Priestess
by Colorful Corvid
Summary: When Naruto's seal is starting to lose it's effectiveness and the Kyuubi is on the brink of freedom, Sakura is determined to to anything that will save him- even if it means loosing her life.
1. Chapter 1

_I do not own anything. I will only state this once, but it pertains to this whole work. _

Warning: This story is rated M for descriptions of intense gore. This warning will be edited to each chapter to warm anyone who has any particular issues.

And so we begin the epic rewriting of Deals With the Devil, which might get a name change later on.

Happy reading.

-0-

The silence that permeated the air hung heavy on her thin shoulders. The sun had set long ago on this hidden place and would never rise here again. The air was thick with decay and felt heavy on her tongue, it tasted like bile.

This land was blackened and stuck in a state of perpetual twilight, reasons why were hard to come by as the few villages that managed to make a living here didn't know or wouldn't even speak to outsiders.

The air was stagnant and Sakura raised a hand to the collar of her shirt and lifted it to her nose, it helped block out some of the strange smell that permeated this shrine but not all of it. She stifled a cough and shrugged her cloak tighter around her slight frame.

The shrine before her was small compared to the ones she was used to in Konoha, it stood several feet taller that her and was made of mildewed gray stone; small patches of slimy moss could be seen in the deeper cracks. It looked to be a single roomed building, a rotted wood door hung limply on dilapidated hinges. Sakura didn't want to touch it.

"So this is the shrine of the Death God." Her voice sounded meek in her own ears and held a tremble that could either be fear or disgust, more than likely it was both.

She steeled her nerves and took a deep reassuring breath- she had a very important mission to accomplish, one that didn't pertain to the simple retrieval mission that Tsunade had sent her on, but one that was important for someone else.

This was for Naruto, and the beast that was sealed within him.

Sakura was sure that she wasn't the only one that had noticed the signs of the legendary demon fox breaking through its seal, but hopefully she would be the last. Naruto's temper had been volatile the last few months; he was extremely easy to anger and would often break out into fights. And Sakura had made the mistake of challenging him to a fight, her reasoning had been that maybe he just needed to let off some steam- the whole village was mourning the loss of Jiraiya, but Sakura knew that Naruto was taking it harder than most. He had been the surrogate father that Naruto had never had.

And so, Sakura had challenged him to a no holds fight, and when Naruto had transformed into his three-tailed version almost immediately and Sakura knew that this wasn't Naruto, this wasn't the boy she had grown to love as a brother- but this was the Kyuubi.

And after she had managed to subdue Naruto, that was after she had sustained several broken ribs and a shattered ankle, she had begun to do some research. The Art of Sealing wasn't a very common profession in Konoha, and the only seal master she had known was Jiraiya. So, with Tsunade's permission she had managed to get herself into the vaults of the more sketchy texts and found some pretty interesting stuff on seals used on the tailed beasts.

The beast's had been around since the Sage of Six Paths, and that was centuries ago- and once people had managed to even think of finding a way to seal away these massive beings of power- the beasts had managed to fight their way through the seals. And it seemed every hundred years or so from what Sakura could gather the beasts became immune to the seals. And it seemed that the new rotation was about to begin.

The time it would take for a Seal Master to create and utilize a new seal would take years- and that was something Naruto didn't have.

For that was the reason she had decided to visit this cursed place- was to make a pact with the God that lived here, well that was_ if_ he still lived here. The shaman woman two villages over said that this was where one went to sell their soul.

Sakura shivered and took a couple steps forward. She had scanned the area earlier and hadn't noticed anything; this included no animals or living plants to be seen. And surprisingly she didn't find that to be so strange considering what kind of God was said to inhabit here.

She raised her arm to open the door and hesitated. Was this really worth it?

She stopped and nodded to herself. Yes, it was- this was for Naruto, her most precious person, and if he wasn't worth this than no one was.

And so Sakura grabbed the handle of the rotted door turned once and pushed. The door gave way easily, dropping pieces of termite infested wood as it went. She stepped inside quietly and almost lost her meager breakfast at the sight before her.

The only light that entered the building was from the crudely made hole in the roof. The shrine was made of black metal, glinting ominously in the faded light, and stood about three feet off the ground. It was hard to tell, but there seemed to be a large hole in the center dais and Sakura could safely assume that is was a large gaping mouth in the center- a black hole to nowhere. But the part that made her sick to her stomach were the teeth, they were as long as her forearm and violently sharp- with pieces of animal carcasses and what looked like the remnants of a human ribcage that was still in the process of rotting. She could see maggots writhing around the ragged pieces of blackened meat that hung limply in the teeth.

Sakura turned her head to the side and vomited her breakfast over the black stone floor. After several moments of dry heaving she felt slightly better and was able to look at the shrine again. She straightened up, and pulled her collar back around her nose, tighter this time.

The pink haired ninja circled around to the back of the shrine, where she found three short steps that led up to the gaping mouth. She was shaking and she cursed quietly under her breath as she tried in vain to steel her nerves.

Once she was standing over the mouth, Sakura thought back on what the shaman woman had told her, once she had made it to the shrine, she was to make a blood offering- and then call out to the god of death.

Jashin.

Sakura breathed and held up the knife the woman had given her. It was ancient, dusty and made from the sharpened rib bone of a child, the legend stating that the bone came from one of the God's own children. It made Sakura sick to even hold it.

But hold it she did and within a few seconds she held her slit palm over the mouth of the shrine and squeezed until bright red blood oozed from her fist. At first she couldn't tell if anything had happened, but then she felt a rumble and what sounded like a contented sigh come from the mouth in the ground.

And to her utter horror, the hole began to convulse and made swallowing motions, the sharp and elongated teeth shifting and tilting inwards, as if to draw in whatever had fed it- to take more. The movement dislodged the rotted torso she had seen earlier and it made sickening thuds as it was swallowed down the hole and banged against the sides of the endless tunnel.

Taking another deep breath, Sakura opened her mouth and shouted the incantation that the shaman had begrudgingly told her.

"Oh hear me, Shinigami of this Realm, I call forth Jashin to strike a bargain! My wager is my soul!" Her voice caught on the last part and she could feel her heart rate climb as she felt the urge to run.

She wasn't supposed to be here, that much was obvious, but she knew that this was the only way to help Naruto, the only way to help her precious person. And if it cost her her life then it was a price she was glad to pay.

Several minutes had passed before she heard any kind of response.

It started as raspy laughter that reverberated within the ground and made Sakura's hair stand to attention. She resisted the urge to rub her arms to rid herself of the gooseflesh.

Then the ground began to rumble and only through her extensive training had she been able to keep her balance as a thick black torrent of smoke began to twist its way past the teeth of the gaping mouth- where it began to make the vague outline of a man. He was transparent and dark, with no discernable features- but his mouth opened in a silent scream and then he rushed at Sakura.

Sakura didn't notice she was moving until her back hit the wall of the room, a hand shaped wisp of smoke securely wrapped around her throat- growing tighter and tighter as it took on a more solid form, until the pinkette was clawing at the smoke so she could breathe, her fingers passed through the smoke as if nothing was there- black spots began to dance in her vision and she was on the verge of blacking out.

Before she could lose consciousness, the pressure at her throat released and she gasped for breath, falling to her knees and holding her neck- fingers immediately glowing green to heal the ligature marks appearing on her fair skin. She coughed once, three times then slowly raised her emerald eyes to meet the form she had conjured. He had taken several steps back onto the dais and floated gently above the mouth.

The first thought that ran through her head was that this man was attractive. He was tall, lean and nude, with ashen white hair that hung down his bare chest in soft waves, stopping around his navel. His skin was odd, stark black with his skeleton outlined in what she assumed was white paint. His face reminded Sakura of nobility, high cheek bones and a thin nose with piercing grey eyes.

He was frighteningly beautiful- and for a split second Sakura could see why people had worshipped him so long ago.

She had opened her mouth to speak her bargain but he cut her off, his voice dark and smooth as he spoke.

"Why have you called me from my kingdom mortal?" Sakura could feel herself quiver as she attempted to form a response. "You are vibrant with life, and should not pass through this realm of the dead."

"I, I have come… I'm here to strike a bargain." Her voice was shaky but gained strength as she went on, further reiterating the reason she was here in her head. This is for Naruto. You have to be strong for him.

"I see, and what are your terms?" His face held a crooked smile, white teeth gleaming in the gloom and it made shivers run down Sakura's back. She hesitated for several moments before she was able to gather her thoughts and speak her terms.

"I trade my soul for the _permanent_ sealing of the Kyuubi within Naruto of Konoha, and that upon Naruto's death- the Kyuubi dies as well- its chakra reabsorbed within the earth." She paused, thinking. "And that Naruto's death may only be cause by natural causes." Her last words came out in a rush as she tried to seal any loopholes the first request had left; it wouldn't do if she got home to find out that Naruto had died before his time.

The God before her straightened up as the full power of her request settled within him. "You know that this will cost you your life." His voice was soft, and pleasing to her ears, soft and seductive.

Sakura nodded once in affirmation. "He is worth it." This was it then, she was going to die for Naruto. Emerald eyes met with that of Death and she smiled calmly, a serene feeling steeling over her body. At those words, Jashin grinned and nodded.

"There is much talk of this boy, Naruto, within the circles of the Kami." The God mused, bringing a hand to stroke his chin pensively. "It really wouldn't do for him to die before his time." He gave a knowing smile and a dry sound escaped his mouth. "He is destined for great things."

His form had begun to waiver and he sighed. "Well, I have a few terms of my own human." Jashin's eyes narrowed slowly as they took in the look on Sakura's face. She was smiling; this simple human girl was smiling in the face of death. He scoffed.

"No, I will not take your soul." His tone held a note finality in it, and he reveled as he watched the girl's face turn from one of acceptance into horror. "I will not take your life in exchange for the terms you have selected."

Sakura straightened up, and opened her mouth to shout her protest- but before she could get a sound out Jashin was in front of her.

He placed a chillingly cold finger on her mouth, hushing her protest and leaving an icy feeling running through her veins. He leaned forward and placed his mouth on her ear. A quiet sigh left Sakura's lips.

"I will not take your soul- because you're going to become my new Honored Priestess." His words were soft and Sakura could hear the wretched smile in his voice.

"It really has been too long since I had an actual Priestess, making sacrifices in my name." Jashin's voice was quiet as he grabbed Sakura's hand- the one that was still freely bleeding into her khaki cloak- and raised the cut to his mouth. "The sacrifices for the women are _very_ different than those of the men."

He pulled back and locked his grey eyes with those of emerald green- then lowered his lips to the wound and began to slowly lick the blood from her hand- a few of the crimson droplets running down his chin to drop on his chest.

Sakura couldn't move, the other voice in her head was screaming and telling her that this wasn't right- that the being before her had changed the terms and this game she was playing was getting more and more dangerous. But Sakura only blinked once and watched in a sort of stunted awe as the God of Death laved his tongue on her palm and tasted her life essence.

The voice in her mind slowly lost volume, until all was in her mind was a quiet blankness.

Once Sakura's hand was free from the blood, the God pulled back and drifted silently back to his alter. His eyes were heavy lidded and he looked content.

"My last Priest got himself blown to bits." Jashin sighed. "That foul-mouthed man was a fool, trying to take on the Nara boy." He shook his head then locked gazed with Sakura again- her eyes were bright but held an empty note to them. Shock probably.

"Listen here girl, I will take on your terms- but instead of your life and soul as payment you will live forever in my service as my new Honored Priestess, and dig up that foul-mouthed heathen buried within your beloved village and together you will rebuild my shrine." He paused and let out a scathing laugh. "All the while preforming sacrifices in my name." He smiled, and this time it held a note of warmth as he turned away from her to look up into the hole in the ceiling. "And in return, I will permanently seal the Kyuubi into that boy's soul so that it will die when he does." He glanced towards Sakura again as she managed to muster up a weak glare. "And I won't take him until his time has come." He finished.

"I…" The word had left her mouth unbidden. Would she really be able to do this? Would she really be able to kill innocent people in the name of the Death God?

She closed her eyes and nodded weakly to herself, tears gathering in the corners of her eyes. She looked at Jashin defiantly and nodded once. "I accept your terms." This was for Naruto_. This was for Naruto_.

And that's when he kissed her.

His lips were firm but gentle as they moved against her own and Sakura was shocked at first, but then almost against her will she reciprocated the kiss. She felt him smirk against her mouth- and then he pulled away. And Sakura was ashamed to admit that she almost didn't want him to.

"A deal with death is always sealed with a kiss." He whispered as he placed his hand between her breasts and pushed gently, she slowly looked down to see a gleaming silver pendent now hung on a black leather cord between her breasts, the simple circle with the inverted triangle in the middle.

"Now there's one last thing." He grinned once more and grabbed her wrists- placing his thumbs in the center of each wrist and pushed hard for a split second before Sakura started screaming.

Pain lanced through each of her hands- so hot that she felt as if she would pass out from the pain. This seemed to clear the gray fog that had kept her mind subdued, no doubt this was a trick used by the God to obtain whatever he wanted.

She screamed again as the pain intensified, and she tried her hardest but was unable to channel chakra to the burning appendages to help ease whatever was causing her so much pain.

And then with a snap of Jashin's fingers the pain was gone- and in the places where he had pushed his thumbs there stood twin marks- black as night symbols that matched the silver between her breasts.

Wet emerald eyes looked up to meet with the smiling face of the Death Kami and he began to laugh. "I will speak with you later, Sakura."

His voice faded from her ears and then she blacked out.

-0-

When Sakura awoke alone, she was only aware of the burning sensation that permeated her hands and left them feeling like they were dying.

With a half-heard cry everything that had transpired between her and the Death Kami begun to flash before her eyes- and for several moments she mourned the decision she had made. If what Jashin had said was true, then she was immortal- just like that Akatsuki that Shikamaru had buried.

So in the end, she would sit by and watch as all of her friends and family moved on with their lives, got married, had children- hopefully retired and died.

But she would have none of that. She was stuck in the body of a twenty-year old and would never be able to grow old with the man of her choosing. And it was for this fact that she cried, sobbing loudly and shamelessly as she mourned the life she would never have, fat round tears pouring from her eyes an soaking her khaki cloak.

Eventually she had run her body out of tears, and managed to sit up from her position on the cold grimy floor. The pain in her hands had subsided mostly, leaving only a mild tingling behind which was slightly uncomfortable but she could manage.

With cloudy eyes she managed to stand, and she could feel herself shaking. Sakura leaned against the cold stone wall and gathered herself, taking several deep breaths until she had managed to calm down and accept the fact that yes, she was doomed to eternal life but at least Naruto would have the chance at a normal life. And that's what mattered. That's all that mattered he would be able to bring Sasuke home where he belonged and then become Hokage- settling down with Hinata and having a few kids.

With that thought she managed to steel her expression into one of a subdued calm, and stormed out of the temple.

-0-

The trip back to Konoha was quick, mainly because Sakura was eager to check on her teammate to make sure that Jashin had kept true with his half of the bargain.

The feeling that filled her when she entered the northern gate was one of relief to see that everything was where it was supposed to be- that the Kyuubi hadn't broken through and gone on a rampage.

She nodded to the guards as she signed her return papers and showed then the proper identification- not that the last part was necessary, mostly everyone knew her as Tsunade's apprentice and her pink hair.

Kotetsu was manning the gate today and as Sakura handed him her papers and the clipboard that kept track of all of who left and entered the village he tried to strike up conversation.

"How're you today Sakura? Mission go well?" He smiled and nodded in her direction.

Sakura nodded and gave a small smile. "Yes, everything went fine."

"Tsunade said to report to her once you've gotten back." Izumo cut in on Kotetsu's left. "She said it was important."

Sakura nodded at the pair and said her goodbyes.

She left quickly and decided to travel to the Hokage tower by rooftop- if Tsunade said with was important that could mean anything, but Sakura was convinced that it had to do with the contents of the scroll in her leg pouch.

And so she sighed and pushed chakra in her legs, taking bounds that no normal person could.

When Sakura swiftly slid into the window of Tsunade's office she was surprised to see Naruto there. Upon catching sight of her he immediately swept her into a bone crushing hug.

"Sakura! I'm glad you're here." He sounded relieved.

"Why?" Sakura asked, running a hand through her pink locks and brushing them away from her face. "Is everything okay?"

Just as Naruto opened his mouth to reply, the door swung open on its hinges and Tsunade entered the room, a stern look on her face.

Sakura immediately bowed and offered up the scroll from her pouch.

"My mission was a success, Lady Tsunade. Here is the scroll." The pinkette said, bowing her head and only raising her eyes when Tsunade didn't take the proffered item.

"Set it down Sakura, we have more important matters to discuss right now." Tsunade sounded tired as she sat down behind her desk, pouring herself some of the sake that was always hidden somewhere in the room.

Sakura placed the scroll on the desk and nodded solemnly, taking a seat next to Naruto. The pair waited quietly while Tsunade finished her drink and gathered her thoughts.

"Naruto's seal is gone, Sakura."

The words hung heavy in the air and Sakura felt fear tingle at the base of her spine. Did Tsunade somehow find out about her deal? Was she going to be suspected for this?

"But, the Kyuubi is still within him. We don't know what happened." Her teacher's voice was tired as she poured herself another glass. "We don't know if this is some kind of attack."

Sakura nodded. "Can you still communicate with Kurama Naruto?" Sakura's voice was a little shaky.

He blond boy nodded. "Yes." He hesitated. "He said that um, someone came to him and spoke in a language he didn't understand- and then the bars disappeared." Naruto ran a hand through his spikey hair. "But he can't leave, he said he tried- but there's something tethering him to me."

Sakura sighed.

"Well," The pinkette said quietly. "If the Kyuubi is still unable to break free- and Naruto is still able to connect to him then I don't see why would this would be a problem right? As long as Kurama can't get free then- then we are safe and no one could take him right?" Sakura stopped to take a breath. "Are we completely sure the seal is gone?"

At this Naruto stood and lifted his shirt to expose his stomach- where the swirled ink tattoo was supposed to be was only sun tanned skin.

Sakura's eyes were wide as she took in the sight. "And he has experienced no negative side effects?" Sakura asked Tsunade, emerald eyes meeting with those of amber.

"No, he just woke up yesterday morning with the seal gone and Kurama spouting nonsense about the man that visited him. Naruto doesn't remember anything." Tsunade spoke, taking a slow drink from her sake saucer. "I'm worried that this could have been a botched attack from the remaining members of the Akatsuki." The Hokage sighed into her cup. "But Naruto wasn't harmed and the Kyuubi is somehow miraculously still sealed." She paused. "I had one of the Yamanaka's take a look inside his head, and they found no trace of any tampering- but there's still something keeping the beast sealed- and from what they said it seems to be stronger than the seal that Jiraiya had placed on Naruto."

At the mention of the former Sanin Sakura could hear Tsunade's voice catch on the sound. They were all still mourning the death of one of this villages greatest ninjas.

"Now Sakura, about that scroll- how did the mission go? Did you run into any trouble?"

-0-

When Sakura had gotten to her apartment that evening after telling Tsunade about her mission- excluding of course the parts about where she sold her life to a God of Death in exchange for sealing away the demon within her best friend- the first thing she did was take a long hot shower.

And once that was done, she dressed in white shorts and a thin tank top and proceeded to treat herself with some reheated tempura.

After her meal, she meandered around her second story apartment until she found her way into the hammock she had set up on her porch- where she proceeded to people watch the street until the sun had set and she was left in the muggy night air.

She was tired, emotionally and physically, and as the thought of trying to sleep outside in her hammock crossed her mind she heard a noise.

Ninja instinct kicking in she immediately jumped up and armed herself with one of the many weapons she had hidden around her home. As she tightened her grip on her kunai she crouched low and peered into the sliding glass door that led to her dining room.

The lights were off and she couldn't see anything other than the faint light that permeated the house from the street lights. Sakura slid the door open silently and stepped inside her home- fully expecting the worse, a burglar, foreign ninja, or any sort of monster- but there was no one.

Well no one was a bit of an understatement- there was a floating shadow flitting through her living room. And at first Sakura thought it was just a trick of the light- but once she located its face and saw the eerily glowing grey eyes of Jashin she placed a hand over her mouth.

"I see you've made it back unharmed, Priestess." The ghost chuckled as she stepped into the living room- her kunai thumping quietly to the floor.

Sakura didn't speak, only looked at the God that was slowly getting more and more corporeal, his form taking on mass until he was as real as her.

"Now, about our bargain," Jashin spoke, a mischievous gleam in his eyes as he patted the cushion adjacent to him. "you will see that I have upheld my half of the deal."

Sakura nodded meekly in agreement. It was true, the Kyuubi was sealed and Naruto was safe and sound, as he had promised. Now she just had to uphold her end of the deal, and it made her sick to her stomach to think of what that might entail.

Jashin smiled, pearly white teeth glinting in the light as Sakura moved to sit next to him-slowly inching as far from his as she could until she was practically perched on the arm of the couch.

"Now now, I wouldn't harm you." The man spoke with a gently voice and Sakura could feel the fog that he settled on her mind the first time they met returning. But this time she was expecting it and was able to fend it off- at least for a little while.

"It's time I teach you about how you're to make your offerings to me." Jashin's voice was smooth as silk as he leaned towards Sakura, a glint in his eyes that made her feel uneasy. "And how you should go about unearthing my previous priest."

"I'm not sure you remember, but when we first met I stated that the sacrifices differ from men to women."

The pinkette nodded once, refusing to make eye contact. She was sure that he was going to tell her that she had to sacrifice innocents that she would have to do unspeakable horrors to people who didn't deserve it.

But what he said made chills dance down her spine and her stomach roil in protest.

"You're going to have to sacrifice parts of yourself. Give me your blood and your pain- and through it I will become stronger." Jashin laughed an ugly sound that reverberated through her ears and gave her a headache.

Sakura felt as though she was going to get sick again at the look on the Death God's face. It was perverse and demanding.

But she had done this willingly. She had made this decision to save someone precious to her. And she would be damned if she failed in this task.

-0-


	2. Chapter 2

Welcome to chapter two! I'd like to say thank you for all the favorites and watches, I really appreciate it. And I'm sorry for the lateness of this chapter, I had finals and I'm in the process of moving so I've been busy.

Now, as for updating- I currently don't have internet but I have my phone which will hopefully let me upload this, so if you're seeing it then I was successful!

The warning for this chapter contains self-harm and gore, so if that's not your cup of tea then I don't recommend you read this.

Happy reading.

-0-

When Sakura awoke the next morning in her cramped shower stall naked, the first thing she noticed was that she was covered in rust red marks of old blood.

And as the memories came rushing into her tired mind, she sighed and closed her eyes- banging her head sharply against the blue tiled wall. She was torn between screaming and crying.

Jade eyes opened slowly and stared blankly out of the window until her abused mind managed to make sense that it was day time and that she was probably late for her training session with Naruto and Kakashi.

And for once in her life, she didn't mind that she was going to be late. The pinkette sighed once more and held her left wrist up to inspect it closely- the mark one her arm was currently inert seeing as it was dark- last night however it had glowed a sickly purple as she performed her first ritual.

Sakura shuddered as she thought about the things she had done to her body under the watchful eyes of her new God. Jashin had been sufficiently pleased.

Out of curiosity, Sakura held her right pointer finger up and channeled a small amount of diagnostic chakra to the tip of her finger then gently inserted the energy into the ink tattoo on her other wrist. She couldn't feel anything strange, only the simple seal the array made.

And Sakura _not_ being a seal master had no idea what all the seal did, so with a deep breath she stood and stretched until she heard several loud pops from her spine then she turned and proceeded to wash away the dried blood that covered her.

It was hard to convince herself that it was worth it to leave the warm water. Standing underneath the almost too hot water had a certain way of making all your troubles melt away until you were nothing but warmth.

But eventually she ran out of hot water, and soon the comforting spray turned into a jet of icy uncomfortable-ness and she was practically forced onto the yellow tiled floor of her small bathroom.

For several moments she stood there, taking in her reflection in the large mirror and wondering what her life had come to when she heard three taps at her door.

Jade eyes moved lazily towards the direction the sound came from and it took her longer than she would like to admit for her to realize that no one had come barging in. Which would have been the case if it were Ino or Naruto- however the three brisk knocks could be Kakashi, and that was usually not a good sign.

So Sakura sighed and wrapped herself in one of her pink fluffy towels and called out. "I'll be right there, let me get dressed."

When she didn't hear a response she shrugged and walked to her room- where she proceeded to dress in her standard outfit, red top, black shorts, khaki over-skirt and knee height boots.

When Sakura exited her room, she noticed that the door was open and that her teacher was seated on her beige couch.

"Is everything alright Sakura?" Kakashi asked, not turning to look at her. "It's very unusual for you to be so late to one of our scheduled training sessions." His voice was low, and for a moment Sakura thought that maybe he was angry at her, but then he turned and smiled- one visible eye crinkling in the familiar manner. "I sent Naruto to get ramen."

The pinkette sighed, rubbing her face then let out a small chuckle. "I hope you didn't tell him to come here with that." She shot him a look. "You know how unhealthy that is for you."

Kakashi waved a hand in her direction and nodded. "Don't worry, I told him to meet us at the training grounds." He turned to face her. "You are okay right?" His eye showed concern and worry, and Sakura felt guilty.

"I'm fine Kakashi; I got back from a mission that tired me out more than I thought." She chuckled, running a hand through short chopped pink locks. "So, are you ready to go?"

The silver-haired man nodded.

-0-

After a brief race with Kakashi, Sakura won, they made it to the training grounds- where a sleepy faced Naruto was seated under a tree. Five or so empty take out bowls littered the ground around him.

"Heya Sakura!" The blond grinned. "You're late!"

Sakura smiled and looked at Kakashi. "Well," She said with a laugh, "I did learn from the best."

Kakashi chuckled, and then sat down next to the village prodigy that was her surrogate brother. Sakura joined the two, sitting on Naruto's other side.

"So I take it you ate all the ramen." Sakura deadpanned as she gave a despondent glare at the empty bowls in her friends lap. Her stomach grumbled loudly at the thought of missed food.

"Of course not!" The blond said with a grumble. "Yours and Kakashi's are in this bag." Naruto pulled a scroll out of his leg pouch and unrolled it. He made a single hand sign then the aforementioned bag appeared. Steam roiled out of the top of the bag and Sakura was surprised he had found a way for the food to maintain its heat.

"And who taught you this trick?" Sakura giggled as she took one of the bowls. It was pork ramen judging from the smell and that was her favorite.

Naruto's face fell a bit at her question. "Jiraiya taught me that one." A sad smiled formed on the blonds face.

Sakura only nodded and placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder. He looked at her and gave a weak smile.

"So let's dig in, huh?" Sakura suggested with forced cheerfulness. Kakashi murmured in agreement and took the Styrofoam bowl she handed him.

As Kakashi turned around to eat- as he usually did to hide his face- Sakura turn to Naruto.

"So, how's Hinata doing?" Sakura asked, taking a bite of the hot noodles.

"She's doing great!" Naruto responded loudly. His face had lost the bitter sadness and in turn morphed into one of utmost joy. "I'm taking her to dinner tonight!"

Sakura smiled and nodded. "Well I'm glad you guys seem to be doing so well!" The pinkette chuckled. "Took long enough." She muttered under another bite of noodles.

-0-

Once Sakura and Kakashi's stomach had been sated, the two took a small break to allow the food in their stomach's to digest and watch Naruto go through a warm up routine with several of his clones.

While one of the clones took a nasty blow to the face Sakura turned to her teacher.

"You know that his seal is gone now, right?" Her voice was hushed as she kept her eyes on Naruto.

"Tsunade told me." Kakashi's voice was equally as quiet. "Do you know anything about it?"

The pinkette shook her head no, but on the inside the voice that kept company in her mindscape muttered guilt over and over again.

"I spoke with the Kyuubi."

Kakashi's words made her stomach sink with dread. "What did he say?"

The silver-haired man paused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Someone visited him- and spoke in a language that he didn't understand. Then the bars disappeared." He took another breath. "But then something else happened. Some kind of tether tied the demon to Naruto's soul- and from what the Yamanaka's say Naruto is slowly absorbing the Kyuubi's chakra."

Sakura did her best to look surprised, wide jade eyes swiveled slowly to look her teacher in the eye. "What do you think this means? That Naruto will become the Kyuubi?" Sakura's voice was a bit shaky.

Kakashi shrugged. "For all we know, this could be an attack from Akatsuki." He sighed slowly. "I've got ANBU watching him- and you for that matter- until we can understand who did this and if it's going to cause problems for the village."

At those words, Sakura was angry- and a bit scared. "I can take care of myself you know." She shot him a look of anger. "I've mastered the Strength of a Hundred." Sakura pointed to the purple mark upon her four head. What bothered her most about this situation was Jashin. The God was constantly hanging on her peripheral and if someone caught him in his corporeal form around Sakura then that could only lead to trouble.

"I never said you weren't capable Sakura." Kakashi turned to face her. "I know that you're more than able to take care of yourself." He rubbed a hand through his unruly hair. "It's just a precaution." He paused. "And it makes me feel better."

The pinkette sighed, turning her gaze to Naruto again. He had doubled the amount of his clones and was using half to help build a Rasengan.

"I think it's time we joined him." Sakura said and nodded in Naruto's direction. "He's going to destroy half the training ground like that, and that's my job."

And with that Sakura turned swiftly from her teacher and began to do a simple set of stretches. Once she was done, she channeled some chakra into her legs and leapt into the air- to land directly in front of Naruto.

Blue eyes met green and Sakura smiled- quickly extending her arm into a punch to Naruto's midsection. It connected with a thud and he was sent flying backwards into a small grove of bamboo. The fragile trees shattered and broke around him.

Before he could get back up, Sakura teleported behind him- and channeled more chakra into her heels. She stomped once, twice, and the ground beneath them crumbled and shook causing debris to fly through the air and severely hinder Naruto's field of sight.

"You're going to have to do more than that to keep me down Sakura!" Naruto shouted. She could see him standing in the middle of the cloud of dust from her vantage point. His head whipped around, trying to catch her scent or sound.

He would find none.

Sakura held her left hand into a single handsign- placing the other upon the bark of the tree she was residing in. As Sakura melted into the tree, she managed to see Kakashi across the field- lazily throwing kunai and shuriken at Naruto. The familiar orange book was visible even from here.

Sakura traveled down the tree and through the earth. It was hard to stay underground for more than a few minutes- you couldn't breathe or open your eyes or mouth. All she had to go by was the vibrations of Naruto stomping his way around the training grounds as he avoided Kakashi's projectiles.

Once she had pinpointed his location- Sakura immediately channeled more chakra into her limbs. Her hand shot out of the earth and grabbed Naruto's ankle. And with a carefully edited substitution technique Sakura traded places with Naruto.

She chuckled as she channeled chakra into the earth- moving it until Naruto's dirty head popped free from it.

"Checkmate." Sakura said as she leaned down and looked Naruto in the eyes.

Just as she pulled her defeated teammate from the ground she felt the cool press of metal against her neck.

"Checkmate." Kakashi' whispered in her ear as he brought the metal closer to her skin.

Sakura only gave a short bark of a laugh and disappeared in a cloud of black smoke. Her voice echoed through the trees as she laughed again.

"Don't speak so soon, Kakashi."

-0-

The trio trained for several more hours, until Sakura was bruised and bloody and dead tired. She had managed to only beat Naruto one more time- then he caught his second wind and beat her into the dirt several more times- aided by Kakashi the two were a fearsome duo.

But she still felt accomplished as she landed lightly on her balcony.

Her house was quiet and dark as she disabled the traps layered around her glass door. She slid it open and stepped inside with a sigh.

The first thing on her list was to take a long hot shower, the other was to order some takeout and sleep until her shift at the hospital started in the morning.

Sakura walked to her bathroom, shedding her clothes as she went until she was standing again in front of her mirror.

She usually wasn't one to gawk at herself in the mirror but something was different.

Sakura had always been a slight girl, thin on the point of looking unhealthy. But over the years since her apprenticeship with Tsunade she had built a thin layer of lean muscle.

The pendent she wore swung gently between her breasts as she leaned over her small counter to get a closer look at her face. She was tired and it showed with black bags under her eyes and a frown marring her forehead.

Just as she was going to turn around and turn the shower on, something caught her eye. Sakura leaned in closer to the mirror- until her nose gently bumped the glass. Something was different with her eyes.

In the center of each pupil there was a silvery dot. It was small but it worried her.

"Great. What more could go wrong with my life?" She grumbled to herself as she sat down on the toilet lid and closed her eyes. If something was really going on with her eyes, say an infection, she would be able to sense it if she went into a meditative state.

So Sakura crossed her legs and sat up straight, closing her eyes and evening out her breathing. Soon she felt her heart rate drop to a steady but slow rhythm. Then she began to search herself using her chakra.

Sakura searched long and hard for any signs of infection or disease, starting from her toes then working her way through the different organ systems and cellular structure. Once she was thoroughly scanning her own brain- she found nothing.

No signs of infection.

Nothing to indicate that her body was under stress.

Deciding that she'd ask Tsunade about it in the morning Sakura decided to go ahead and take her shower.

She spent a long time under the hot spray, letting it wash away the grime she had accumulated through her training session with the remnants of her team.

Once the hot water had run out on her, she stepped out and wrapped herself in one of the many folded cotton towels she kept under the sink.

The pinkette headed to the living room, intent on ordering her food then getting dressed.

Just as she picked up the phone, and pushed the familiar numbers for her favorite take out place she felt a familiar presence.

Sakura turned with a half-hearted glare at the God that stood looming over her. Sakura took a step back and proceeded to order her food- holding up a hand to silence the God.

He looked amused and Sakura was getting irritated. She finished placing her order then slammed the phone down on the receiver.

"What do you want now?" The words were biting as they came out of her mouth. She was irritated and tired, and just wanted to eat then sleep- but no, her new deity demanded attention.

"It's time to talk about resurfacing my Priest." Jashin's tone was quiet and calm as he looked down at Sakura with steely eyes, silver hair cascading down his bare chest as he moved to stand before her.

He was still naked.

Sakura adamantly kept her eyes on his face. "What do you mean." It was more of a statement than a question and Sakura was proud she had managed to keep the small quiver out of her voice.

"I mean, part of our deal Honored Priestess." Jashin's eyes narrowed as he took another step closer- bringing a hand to her chin. He lifted her face until he was peering into her eyes.

He leaned in close, close enough that Sakura could feel faint heat radiating from his body. She gulped.

"I see." The God chuckled and took a step backwards. "You've begun to change already then. This is sooner than I had expected." His face looked pensive as he took in Sakura's towel clad form.

"What?" Sakura's voice was a bit higher than she had intended. "You mean my eyes? Do you know what's wrong with them?" If he had done something to her then she deserved to know, right?

"It's part of the title, Sakura." Jashin chuckled. "You are my Honored Priestess. It is only fitting that you begin to take on my image." He paused and stifled a chuckled at the look on her face. "However…"

He was interrupted by a knock on the door.

Sakura shot the man a glare and tightened her towel around herself and moved to open the door.

Kakashi.

"Sakura." Kakashi nodded at her as he pushed past her and moved into the living room. "My ANBU reported that they heard someone talking in here with you." He turned and locked eyes with the pinkette.

"Are you okay? Who was it?" His voice was stern, visible eye looking around frantically. "I don't sense any other chakra."

Sakura sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "No one was here Kakashi; I was just ordering some take-out." She tightened the towel around herself. "Really, I'm fine. I just want to get dressed, eat then sleep okay? And I told you I can take care of myself!"

Kakashi knew the telling signs of his student beginning to get irritated- and an angry Sakura is not a good Sakura.

"Let me… let me just take a look around okay?" His voice sounded defeated but pushed past the towel clad girl to do a sweep of her apartment.

The pinkette could feel irritation bubbling underneath her skin but she took a deep breath and when she exhaled Kakashi was back- a look of confusion on his face.

"Okay, everything seems fine here." Kakashi said sheepishly as he ran a hand through silver hair. "Sorry to interrupt you."

And then he was gone in a swirl of leaves. Sakura knew that she would be stuck cleaning them up.

Sakura sighed and trekked back to her room to get dressed. The shadow of the God followed her back as well.

-0-

Once Sakura had gotten dressed and ate her fill of her tempura she managed to drag herself to bed where she promptly fell asleep.

Her sleep was peaceful at first but soon left her tossing and turning in a cold sweat. She eventually sat up and rubbed her tired eyes. A sigh left her lips as she looked around the pale blue walls of her room.

She had lived in this apartment for a while, ever since her parents had passed. She was given the apartment rent-free by the council as retribution for losing her parents on a village classified mission. The apartment complex was full of younger ninja whose parents had met the same fate as hers.

Sakura stood from her bed and padded into the living room, where she grabbed one of her thicker tomes of medical text and her reading glasses. She turned on a lamp and thought that maybe she could read herself to sleep.

And as if on cue, Jashin appeared and became corporeal beside her- the usual smug look on his face.

"What do you want now." Sakura deadpanned, never looking up from the book in her hands.

"The other part of our deal, Priestess." His voice was smooth as he leaned in closer to her face. "You need to unearth my Priest so you two can begin to rebuild my shrine."

Sakura sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose in aggravation. "And how do you expect me to do that without causing trouble for myself and this village?"

The God shot her a look of disdain. "I don't care what happens to your village or the problems it will cause. You made this deal, Priestess, and you will abide by your end or I will unseal the beast from that boy's soul." Jashin's tone was chilling to say the least and Sakura could feel power radiate from the being beside her.

"Okay, okay." She conceded, raising her hand up in a passive gesture. "I'll figure something out- you'll just have to give me some time." Emerald eyes locked with silver. "It's not like I'm going to die, you've got plenty of time for me to work this out."

-0-

The rest of the night passed by slowly, Sakura managed to get a few hours of rest before her alarm started going off.

She had taken a shower and was snacking on her leftovers from the previous night when she heard a knock on her door. It was quiet and polite and Sakura could only assume that it was Hinata- everyone else she knew usually barged in like they owned the place.

The pinkette smiled and she called out. "Come in Hinata."

The violet haired woman entered Sakura's apartment with a small but shy smile on her face- a book in her hands.

"Hello, Sakura." Her voice was warm as she stepped inside. "I was just returning this book you lent me last week."

Sakura smiled. "Did it come in handy? I figured you'd like it."

Hinata nodded and placed the book on Sakura's small glass coffee table. "I've been trying to change how I channel my chakra to better use the Byakugan."

"Well, there are a few more medical texts I can get from Lady Tsunade if you'd like." Sakura said as she reached to take the book from the table, just before her hand touched the text- Hinata's hand snapped out and grabbed Sakura wrist with an almost painful grip.

Sakura was startled to say the least- the look on Hinata's face was one of intense concentration as she activated her Byakugan.

"Hinata, what-?" The pinkette's voice sounded weak in her own ears as she watched helplessly as Hinata inspected the tattoo on her exposed wrist.

"Sakura..." The heiress turned her pearl eyes slowly to look at her friend- a look of upmost sadness crossed her face. "Sakura, what did you do?" Her voice was a whisper as she pulled the other girl closer, Byakugan still activated, she peered into Sakura's emerald eyes. The silver spots had gotten bigger.

"I…" Sakura paused and swallowed. She had been found out. Somehow Hinata knew that she had made a grave misstate. "I.." Her mouth was suddenly bone dry.

"Looks like your secret is out, Priestess." A sly voice said from the corner. Jashin took a smooth step forward, silver glowing eyes attached to the face of Hinata. "Ah the Hyuuga Heiress, I was hoping to meet you at some point." He paused. "I haven't seen a Hyuuga since the last sealing of your branch children."

Hinata immediately pushed Sakura behind her, and raised her palms- chakra already flaring there in preparation of her Gentle Fist technique.

"What do you want, Demon?" Hinata's voice was low and threatening. "What have you done to Sakura?"

Jashin let out a bark of laughter. "I haven't done anything here to the Priestess that she didn't make a deal for." The God smiled eerily.

"What does he mean Sakura? Did you make a deal with him?" Hinata's voice was scared but she held her position strong and refused to lower her glowing hands.

Sakura closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She stepped out from behind her friend and placed her hands on the girl's shoulders.

"Calm down Hinata, he is here because I made a deal." The words she spoke sunk through the air like lead and Sakura could see Hinata's face fall as she made the realization.

"What did you bargain for?" Hinata's voice was small and weak as she gently lowered her arms. She looked betrayed.

"I…" Sakura shot a look at the God next to her. "I traded my soul to save Naruto."

"What? Naruto didn't need saving!" Hinata's voice gained more strength as she took another fearless step towards Jashin.

"He _did_ Hinata, the Kyuubi's seal was slowly disintegrating and the only seal master in Konoha was Jaraiya and he's gone." Sakura took another breath. "So I traded my life for the Kyuubi to be permanently sealed within Naruto's soul, and that when he dies so does the tailed beast." Sakura could see her life begin to crumble around her.

Hinata would tell Naruto, and Naruto would never speak to her again. And then it would slowly cascade into a mess and Sakura would be forced to leave her village. Her home. Her precious people.

"Sakura… why, why didn't you tell anyone? Does Naruto know?" Hinata's pale face was sad and angry.

"No, Naruto doesn't know- please, please don't tell him." The pinkette pleaded. "I did this for him, so he could live the life he's always wanted with you and this village. Please don't spoil it with this." Sakura sounded pathetic to herself and felt guilt bubble uncomfortably in the pit of her stomach.

It seemed to take forever before Hinata conceded. "I won't tell him." She took a deep breath and paused. "But you have to tell me everything."

And Sakura did.

-0-

The next few days passed in a blur for Sakura.

She was either working at the hospital, training with her team and now Hinata, or working on a plan to get access to the Nara complex so she could work on unearthing the only other follower of this twisted faith.

Soon a chance presented itself. Sakura was tasked with taking care of one very stubborn and sick Nara heir that refused to leave the complex to attend the hospital.

Sakura had left her home early that morning and was on her way to the Nara complex when she ran into Hinata again.

The Heiress had been treating her with wary regard every time they crossed paths. It made Sakura's heart ache to know that she had lost a friend over her decision.

"Sakura, I need to see you when you're done today." Hinata said quietly as she grasped Sakura's shoulder. "It's about Naruto. He's okay, but there have been some developments I think you should know about."

Hinata's words made Sakura stomach turn over, but she nodded consent. "I'll come by when I'm done with Shikamaru."

-0-

When Sakura came upon the Nara compound she was immediately blown away with how beautiful it was.

Lush trees and small meadows separated the houses, and she could see small herds of deer around the edges of the compound.

When she approached the gate, she was stopped by a jonin that belonged to the clan.

"Name and purpose of visit?"

"Sakura Haruno, medical treatment of Shikamaru Nara." At that the boy gave a snicker.

"He's been complaining all day about having you treat him."

Sakura smiled. That sounded like Shikamaru alright. And so with a short wave the boy let her into the compound while writing what she assumed was her name on the clipboard he carried with him.

Sakura had only been to the Nara compound once before, and that was only briefly so it took her asking a few elderly woman where she could find the main house.

Sakura found the building easily enough after that, and the sight that met her was one she would remember for a long time.

Shikamaru was sitting on the front porch of the main house, face as red a tomato as his mother berated him for being out of bed.

"See, the medical ninja is here now mom so you can leave me alone." Shikamaru shot Sakura a look and the pinkette nodded quickly.

"I will make sure he gets to bed and rests." The pinkette bowed as she was scrutinized by the Nara Matriarch. The dark haired woman nodded once and retreated inside.

"Thank god you got here when you did." Shikamaru mumbled as he leaned forward. "She's been driving me crazy."

"And you should be inside where you can rest." Sakura said firmly as she stepped closer to the Nara boy and placed a hand on his forehead.

"You're burning up." The pinkette shook her head. "You haven't taken anything for this yet?"

Shikamaru said nothing only shook his head as Sakura coddled him into the house where he directed her towards his room with a muttered 'troublesome' every few feet and a sneeze here and there.

-0-

Once Sakura had started Shikamaru on a series of antibiotics for the illness he had picked up in Suna, Sakura wandered into the main receiving area of the main house where she ran into Shikamaru's mother again.

"I managed to get him to bed with some medicine." Sakura said as a way of greeting. "Give him this twice a day with a meal and he should be well within a few days."

The woman nodded in thanks. "If there is anything you require of me, then please say so- I am greatful for you taking care of my brat of a son."

Sakura smiled. "Well, I would really enjoy a tour of your grounds, this is such a beautiful place."

She felt guilty as the woman nodded once and smiled, motioning to a small boy who was standing attentive in the corner of the room.

"Jin, please give this kind lady a tour of the grounds. You can do that right?"

The small boy nodded, and eagerly took Sakura's hand and pulled her out the door quickly.


	3. Chapter 3

Jin was small, and very thin- that seemed to be a common trait among the Nara, his excitement however knew no bounds.

"Follow me please!" He said with a bright smile, still holding onto Sakura's hand.

Sakura couldn't help but smile as she listened to the boy talk animatedly about all the different houses they passed and the different little clearings and what they were all used for. The nagging voice in her head made her stomach sink as she took in the information, her needs were nefarious and treasonous- she was abusing her position within her village and it was killing her inside.

Soon the little Nara's tour stopped at the edges of the densest forest Sakura had ever seen. Two towering trees made the only entryway she could see, the wall of trees thick and unpassable- a heavy gold rope crossed between the entrance serving as a barrier and Sakura could see the different amount of seals and chakra that was interwoven within the strands from where she stood. It looked as if it would be impossible to infiltrate.

"I'm sorry Lady Sakura but outsiders aren't allowed in here." Jin said from her side, he tugged gently on her hand to lead her towards the center of the compound once again.

"Oh?" She feigned innocence. "And why is that?" Her smile was soft but the sadness in her eyes was monumental. God she was an awful person, abusing the trust of a child was something Sakura never thought she would do.

"There are monsters in there." He said in a whisper, his other hand placed over his mouth to hide his words. "When we come of age we have to spend a night in the forest to prove ourselves." He continued, eyes glinting with mischief. "I only have a few more years then I'll be strong like big brother and the whole compound will know!" He shouted happily. "I'm going to be the strongest in the whole village!"

Sakura smiled at him and nodded. "Of course you will." She said gently.

-o-

Once Sakura was done with her tour, she thanked Jin with a smile and some candy she kept in her pocket for when she had to treat children at the hospital. A sweet always seemed to soften the traumatic blow of a routine shot.

The information she had learned hung heavy on her shoulders. She now knew the layout of the Nara compound, up until the Forest, and she would use this for her infiltration.

The main question was how she was going to get into the Forest without being of Nara descent. The trees were impenetrable on either side of the entrance and it was obvious that the seals placed upon the rope were meant to serve as a barrier to keep unwanted outsiders away.

What was she going to do once she had unearthed the Akatsuki? She wouldn't be able to stay in the village that much was certain.

How could she leave her _home_? How could she betray these people that she held so dear to her heart?

Sakura almost broke down crying in the street at this realization. Her sacrifice had made _sense_ when she did it, but now she wished for nothing more than to take it back.

How could she be so horrible to the people that had helped her grow? How could she betray the only home she knew?

With a heavy heart Sakura trudged through the throngs of people in the market to her home, where she knew a very irate Hinata would be waiting.

-o-

When Sakura landed upon her balcony the glass door into her living room was already open- and there was a pack of ANBU going through her belongings with little care. She could see some remains of broken dishes littering her kitchen floor.

The pinkette sadness quickly turned to rage as she stepped into her home- fists raised in anger.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" She shouted, face turning red in anger at her privacy being violated. She suspected Kakashi was behind this.

"Sakura Haruno." One of the ANBU spoke as he moved to step in front of her, she assumed he was the captain. His mask was that of a snake, and this seemed to chill Sakura to the bone.

"Yes? Why are you in my home?" She answered, rage still coursing brightly through her. Hot pins and needled danced down her spine as she tried her best to keep her anger from boiling through her skin. The marks on her wrists grew hot and she could feel chakra rushing into the seals.

"We have reason to believe that you've been harboring dangers to the village." The man intoned, voice quiet reflecting no emotion. "Should we find evidence then you will be brought to the Hokage for trial."

"Wait… _what_?!" Her voice was still irate and incredulous. "What the_ hell_ are you talking about?!"

And then Hinata's quiet voice came from her left.

"I'm sorry Sakura, I had to tell Tsunade. I couldn't let you endanger the village this way." Her pale eyes were sorrowful and her face trained on the floor. She refused to look Sakura in the face. "You must tell Lady Hokage about what you did."

Sakura's heart broke for the second time today as she gazed upon the visage of a once treasured friend.

"Hinata…" She whispered, jade eyes filling with tears. "..._how could you_?"

Sakura felt physical pain in her chest as the Hyuuga finally raised her pearly gaze to meet Sakura.

"I am so sorry Sakura."

"You won't find anything! I am innocent!" Sakura shouted as she moved to step onto the balcony. She was innocent, at least for now- she hadn't done anything directly against the village- she had only done her best to help her friend.

Sakura needed to put as much space as possible between herself and Hinata, otherwise she would most definitely do something she would regret.

Sakura never thought that someone so close to her would cause her such grief. She had always treasured Hinata as a friend, and in part she had made this sacrifice for her, indirectly at least. She was giving Hinata a chance at the life she had always wanted with Naruto, couldn't she see that?

Sakura slumped to the floor of her balcony, back pressed against the wall next to the sliding glass door. She buried her face in her hands and shook, not with tears, but with fear and anger.

-o-

The searching lasted about two more hours, and Sakura refused to speak or look at any of the ANBU members that had attempted to get her to say anything incriminating. The snake ANBU had frequently stepped before her and would ask her strange questions that didn't make any sense, after glaring hatefully at him she held her silence.

But just as Sakura had said, they found no one- no traces of foreign chakra or hidden letters or anything that could possibly lead to the slightest belief that she was guilty.

The ANBU team left with nary a word, only the missive that she should speak to the Hokage about any developments that might have been made. Once they were gone, Hinata's face was red with embarrassment.

"Sakura, I-"

The medic cut her off.

"_Never_, never speak to me again. You need to leave." She said, not moving from her position on the ground.

"Sakura- you have to understand." She tried again, but the pinkette just turned her head away and refused to listen to anything Hinata had to say. "I'm just trying to do what's best for the village, my heart was in the right place."

After a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, Hinata departed.

Sakura stood and left soon after, her intent set on the Hokage tower- her ruined apartment put on the back burner for now.

-o-

"Sakura." Tsunade greeted. "Please, take a seat." Amber eyes were steely as they took on the girl she had basically raised.

"I have to say I'm sorry for the abruptness of the... investigation." Her voice warmed as Sakura merely stared at her, refusing to move to the seat that Tsunade had offered her.

"I knew they wouldn't find anything, Sakura, but it is protocol for any claims like these be investigated." The Hokage said, moving to place a hand on her student's shoulder. "You know that." Tsunade's eyes showed concern.

"Are you okay?"

Sakura only looked at her mentor for a few seconds of heady silence then she burst into tears, heavy ugly sobs leaving her trembling frame as she curled into herself.

Tsunade left all pretense of being the village leader and hugged her pseudo daughter tightly to her chest.

"_How could she_?" Sakura whimpered to herself. Her mind repeated one phrase over and over again what have I done, what have I done, _whathaveIdone_.

Tsunade only hugged her tight, sadness apparent on her face as she attempted to comfort Sakura.

-o-

Word had spread quickly through the ranks about Hinata's 'false' accusation that Sakura was a danger to the village, and the first one to really offer her any comfort was Naruto.

He had shown up to Sakura's apartment within two hours after she had left Tsunade's office, her face red and irritated from crying, and had held her tight as she cried the last bit of tears she could muster, all the while saying how sorry he was.

Eventually she had fallen asleep and Naruto had put her to bed. The next morning she awoke to thunderous snores from her living room.

Sakura laid in bed, unmoving as she clasped the pendent hanging from her neck. A calmness washed over her, and Sakura was unsurprised to look over and see Jashin perched elegantly on the edge of her bed.

"Had a busy night?" His tone was light, but Sakura could see the smirk playing at the edges of his mouth.

"You should have never revealed yourself to her." Sakura whispered, jade gaze unblinking and focused on the ceiling. "All of this could have been avoided."

He only laughed once, a harsh sound that made her ears ring. "You do not tell me what to do, Priestess." She didn't dignify that with a response.

"Tell me…" He said after a few more moments of silence, Naruto's snores still ringing loudly from the living room, "What is your plan to free the Priest?"

Sakura sighed, finally moving from her position to sit up, legs crossed, and face the God.

"I'm still working on it." She rubbed her eyes angrily. "I visited the Nara complex yesterday but he is held within their sacred Forest and I'm unsure of how I'm going to be able to enter." Her voice was flat as she held his steely gaze. "The Nara may be lazy but they are geniuses."

Jashin turned to face her, his silver eyes glowing eerily in the early morning light slipping through her window, and stretched a hand out to touch the Yin seal upon her forehead.

Sakura's breath froze in her throat as he made contact with her, she felt the chakra stored within the seal move fluidly- as if it had become sentient and wished to meet the despicable being before her.

"Your seal is impressive for a human." He said, silver eyes swirling.

Sakura suddenly heard Naruto's snores stop from the living room, then she heard a muffled thump as she assumed he had rolled off of the couch.

"Oi!" Sakura you awake yet?" He yelled groggily from the living room.

Jashin vanished just as quietly as he had appeared.

The calmness left with him.

-o-

Naruto had very sweetly went out and picked up Sakura some breakfast, along with some exceptionally strong tea from her favorite shop a few blocks away.

They had been chatting amiably for a few hours, Sakura seated comfortably on the couch with Naruto stretched out on the floor, rubbing his now full belly- several take out ramen bowls now littering her floor- when there was a very timid knock at the door.

Sakura almost thought she didn't hear it, but she was a ninja- and like most ninja worth their salt she could sense chakra- and it was most certainly Hinata standing outside of her apartment.

Sakura sighed, and Naruto jumped up- shooting Sakura a sympathetic look as he stood to answer it.

"Oh, Hey Hinata." Naruto said, and Sakura could hear the disappointment in his voice as he greeting his girlfriend.

"N-Naruto!" Hinata was startled. "What are you doing here?"

Sakura scoffed from her place on the couch.

"I'm hanging with Sakura! What else would I be doing here? Especially after, uh, what happened." His usual sunny disposition was somewhat stilted. Sakura could tell that he was upset with Hinata, but he didn't know how to show it- and with a relationship so new she didn't blame him.

"Can... can I come in?"

There was a significant pause as Sakura watched Naruto turn towards her for conformation. Sakura stared for several moments then nodded once, very gently.

"Sakura… I'm sorry." Hinata said quietly as she moved to stand before Sakura, her pearl eyes were turned to the floor. "You have to understand that… that.." She faltered, quiet voice trailing into silence.

Sakura only stared at her, jade eyes narrowed warily.

"I'll uh, I'll leave you two to talk. Sakura I'll see you tomorrow for training right?" Naruto said from the doorway, it was obvious that he was uncomfortable.

"Yes, thank you for coming over Naruto." Sakura smiled at him and waited until he had departed, his chakra signature getting smaller and smaller as he mingled with the civilians.

There were several long minutes where Hinata stood awkwardly in Sakura's living room while the pinkette just stared at her, waiting.

"I did what I think is best for this village!" Hinata finally shouted, she was breathing heavily with the force of her emotions.

"You have sold your _soul_ Sakura! That is unacceptable! How could you do this?!" Her voice was steadily gaining volume. "You have put everyone I love in danger of that, that demon! You could have found another way to help Naruto, it didn't have to come to this." Hinata was shaking now, she finally met eyes with Sakura.

"Hinata…" Sakura said quietly, running a hand through her hair. "_I_ did what was best for this village, _I _made a sacrifice that would let you live out your life with Naruto- one that would let him come to terms with the best sealed within him and so he wouldn't have to ever worry again about it breaking free, or taking control. _I did this for you, just as much as I did for him_."

The pinkette paused and closed her eyes- rubbing the bridge of her nose.

"If I hadn't done this, Hinata, then Naruto would be dead and so would countless others. If Kurama had managed to break free then it would rampage, and it would decimate _everything _you love. If I hadn't done this then you _wouldn't have a home anymore_" Sakura took another breath. "you wouldn't have _Naruto_ anymore.

Sakura looked at Hinata and she could see tears collecting in the woman's eyes.

"Everything I have ever done was for the benefit of this village." Sakura's words were cold as she looked upon the face of someone she had trusted. "_Everything_."

"Sakura you could have found another way." Her voice trembled as several more tears travelled down Hinata's pale cheeks. "You didn't have to do this."

Sakura only sighed, her chest aching as she only shook her head in defeat.

-o-

Hinata had left quietly, there was nothing else she could say.

Sakura knew that Hinata was going to become a problem for her to stay in the village, and a dark part of her mind said that she was going to have to leave Konoha once she had managed to unearth the Akatsuki. She didn't think too much about that, it made her breath come in shallow gasps and her pulse race.

She didn't want to leave her home, she didn't want to betray her village.

But she had to, this was the decision she had made and it was one that she was going to have to stick with.

"I'm doing this for Konoha." She muttered under her breath repeatedly, a mantra to keep herself sane as she lightly sketched out a map of the Nara compound. She had been muttering this to herself for the past few hours as she worked, drawing the locations of the different houses that Jin had spoken of.

In the center of the compound was the largest meadow she had been shown, it held the main house along with several small shrines. This was going to be the hardest part of her infiltration- getting past the large patrols of the chunin, along with avoided the deer that seemed to graze there.

Sakura didn't know the extent of the relationship the Nara had with their deer, whether they were summons or not and capable of relaying information, or if they were like pets with little care to who came and went. She wasn't going to take the chance of them spotting her though, too much could go terribly wrong with her plan.

The main purpose of her plan was to get into that forest, to bypass the traps and sensors that had been placed around the Akatsuki's grave, and to unearth this living corpse and get out undetected.

Several different ideas entered Sakura's head, her earth travel jutsu could be implemented to bypass parts of the compound, she could also send off clones to act as a diversion, or she could just decimate her way through the defenses and make a huge mess for herself.

Sakura stopped mumbling her mantra and wiped the sweat off of her forehead. She needed a break.

Sakura rolled the large scroll she had been sketching on and hid it well within the floor of her bedroom, several boards had come loose so this was where she hid her valuables, cloaked with jutsu she had learned from Tsunade.

In two months' time, Sakura was planning to strike, two months of planning and worrying and stressing herself out to the point of vomiting, two months of waiting anxiously for Hinata to reveal Sakura's deal.

Two more months until she was going to defect from her village.

Two more months until she broke Naruto's heart.

Two more months.

-o-

A/N: _So I'm really surprised to be back, and I'm guessing you guys are to. I had lost all inspiration for this story but then one day I just started thinking about it, and so I started writing again. _

_Sorry it's been so long lol. _

_Now before you guys go and think I'm bashing on Hinata, I'M NOT. I LOVE HINATA SO MUCH SHE'S AMAZING. _

_But you have to think of the situation this has put her in, she has found out something terrible- something that she thinks could tear the village apart and she's doing what she thinks is best to protect her home- so please don't think I'm trying to put her in a bad light. _

_Anyway, I hoped you like this and I've already started working on chapter four so look for that within the next week or so. _


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hello there! Sorry for the long wait, I had finals and had to move out of my dorm- so it's been a bit stressful. But here is chapter four! I hope you enjoy!

-0-

Sakura awoke the next morning with a massive headache that felt as though someone had tried to shove the entirety of the Hokage monument within her skull.

"Kami." She muttered, lifting a softly glowing green hand to her forehead- she was running a very slight fever.

When she opened her eyes, she cried out- the light was so bright that it sent needles of pain lancing through her mind- she could barely think. Her healing chakra didn't seem to affect whatever was causing this headache.

With one eye cracked open just the barest amount she stumbled into her bathroom, turning the light off quickly. The darkness was soothing, more so than she thought possible and she was able to open her eyes again.

When Sakura faced the mirror she let out a strangled cry of shock- her eyes were fully silver, the strange dot she had noticed earlier had made quick work- spreading to overtake her whole iris. Her eyes now resembled that of Jashin's only they were luminescent- the glow they gave was eerie and made her sick to her stomach.

"How do I make it stop?" She whimpered quietly to herself, there had to be a way to make this go away.

Sakura placed her forehead against the cool glass of the mirror- her pendent swinging gently to tap against the reflective surface.

"I see you've come into the Sight." Jashin's low voice said over her shoulder. "You are progressing faster than any other Priestess I've had before." He chuckled. "As you always have."

"Make it go away!" She said quietly, her voice low and angry as Jashin only laughed. Sakura backed away from the mirror until her back hit the frosted glass of her shower door. "I didn't ask for this."

Jashin's smile fell from his face as he advanced upon her, his silver eyes now locked with ones that matched- his teeth bared in a fearsome grin.

He moved until his lips were bare inches from her own trembling ones.

"This is exactly what you asked for- when you gave the blood offering and called me back to this mortal plane- this was your decision." His breath fanned across her face. "Stop pitying yourself woman, live with the choices you've made and be proud of them, like you have every other time."

His hand moved to caress her face, Sakura stood as still as possible- her heart thundered against her ribcage.

When his hand made contact with her face- Sakura's vision failed her as swirling images raced through her mind.

-she was a peasant, feet bloody and raw from the harrowing journey to the shrine- the stillborn infant in her arms raised up to the stone dais as an offering-

-she was standing at the top of a pyramid made of glittering white stone- a jeweled scepter held in her hand as she gave the command for her armies to march-

-she lay dying in the battlefield, a sword run through her abdomen, her clothes slowly soaking with her own blood as her husband kneeled down and twisted the blade further, shock and betrayal leaked from her eyes-

-she rose from the carnage of the battle, death no longer held onto her as her eyes blazed silver, her battle clothes soaked with blood as she enacted revenge for the betrayal-

"Stop it!" She shouted and broke contact from the God, her eyes screwed shut as she tried to block out the images the best she could. She turned away from the God's grinning visage and heaved weakly into the toilet next to her.

Nothing but stomach acid splashed into the clear water, but she felt slightly better.

"What... _was_ that?" She asked weakly, refusing to make eye contact with Jashin. "That wasn't me! I would never… never do things like that."

"That _was_ you, my Priestess- one of the many lives you have lived." His voice sounded solemn as his gaze traveled over her. "One of the many you had promised to _me_."

Sakura choked more bile spilling from her lips as she retched more into the toilet. She didn't even want to begin to think about what he could have meant by that.

"You may not remember now, but you will- you always do." His tone was almost soothing and Sakura felt a hand ghost over her sweaty forehead. "You always remember me my darling- how could you not?" His voice held something that sounded a lot like remorse to her.

She batted him away, turning to face the toilet once more as her body heaved up nothing but painful groans and acid.

"I hate this." She whimpered to herself, she had sunk so low- so very low.

Jashin only gave another dark chuckle, his voice fading quietly as he spoke. "You always do in the beginning…" Then he was gone and Sakura was left with nothing but the headache and strange glowing eyes.

-0-

Anxiety laced her steps as she walked slowly towards the bathroom mirror. Her eyes were still glowing, but the pain had all but vanished- leaving behind small tingling pricks here and there.

She was due to meet with Naruto in an hour, and he would certainly notice her knew addition. How was she going to hide this?

Jashin had been silent when she had called for him. He was being spiteful- as was his nature, but how did he expect her to fulfil her mission if she was pulled into questioning for an unregistered Kekkei Genkei? That was what she assumed they would think the strange markings were at least, hopefully they wouldn't suspect anything more nefarious than latent genes making their presence known.

Maybe she should just tell the truth? At least with what happened this morning- her massive headache and her new glowing eyes- she might be able to pass it off if she was lucky.

Sakura had tried as many different combinations of the genjutsu she knew to try and hide the startling color- but nothing would stick. The illusion would hold for maybe seven minutes before the chakra slid off like paint and the glow would peek through.

She needed to talk to Tsunade, that much was obvious- but how much could she risk to tell her?

With that thought in mind Sakura left her darkened bathroom, a pair of stylish but large sunglasses protected her sensitive new eyes.

She looked ridiculous but it was the only pair she owned, a hand me down from Ino during one of their many clothing swaps. Sakura was grateful for them despite how they looked.

She needed to see Tsunade and see if the woman had any kind of insight on her new plight.

So with her heart in her throat Sakura left her small apartment and headed towards the Hokage Tower.

-0-

Sakura had been waiting outside of the Tsunade's office for about an hour now and although Sakura had the right as her apprentice to enter she decided to wait- the angry voices coming from within sounded serious and Sakura already had enough on her plate as it was to be dealing with problems in the village.

About fifteen minutes later Sakura could hear a muffled shout from her teacher, and then the door opened to reveal one Shimura Danzo who had a very angry look on his face- but once his eyes matched Sakura's he straightened up and the angry look was gone.

He walked past her without a word, and although his face was now one of passive indifference Sakura could feel the rage boiling off of him in waves. Whatever had happened in that office had really started his temper and that couldn't bode well for Tsunade.

So with a heavy sigh Sakura straightened her shirt and knocked three times on her sensei's door.

There was no sound so Sakura took this as an invitation and opened the door slowly and stepped into the Hokage's office.

Tsunade was sitting at her desk, head in her hands- there was an empty sake cup to her right and the shards of what Sakura assumed was a broken sake bottle to her left. Papers were strewn about her desk and Sakura could tell easily that Tsunade was angry.

"Good morning Lady Hokage." Sakura said, bowing slightly at the waist. She took the seat in front of the desk and waited for Tsunade to gather herself.

Eventually the blond raised her head and sighed softly.

"One day, I will kill that man." Her voice was low and angry but Sakura could tell that most of her anger had been spent.

"I understand Shishou." Sakura said with a slight smile.

"So what is it you need girl? You're off today from the hospital- and what's with the ugly glasses? Ino been pestering you again?" Tsunade's voice had warmed slightly with a curious tone.

"Well, Shishou- something has err- happened?" Sakura's voice was slightly panicked, but she steeled her nerves as she slowly removed the shades.

"I woke up to this, this morning with the worst headache I had ever experienced." The pinkette's voice was quiet as she rose her silvery gaze to meet the warm amber of her teacher.

Tsunade stared at her for a long time, eyes narrowed inquisitively. The Hokage stood and moved towards Sakura with purpose in her step and Sakura felt that her sensei was secretly happy to have something to distract her from her conversation with Danzo.

"Sakura, it looks as though you've developed a latent blood line." Tsunade's face was grave as she placed her glowing hands on either side of her apprentices face. "I can't yet be sure without proper diagnostics, so I'm going to refer you to the doctor who tends to the Hyuuga- he is specialized in the Byakugan but is the top doctor for other blood line abilities as well." She paused. "Have you noticed anything different with your vision lately?"

Sakura nodded. "When I awoke this morning everything was so bright I could hardly open my eyes, other than that not really?"

"I'm going to schedule you for a diagnostic today after my meeting with the Elders, then we will go and see the Hyuuga doctor."

Sakura nodded once a small nervous smile on her face as Tsunade stepped away, Sakura replaced the sunglasses she had been wearing.

-0-

Since her appointment wasn't going to be until later in the day, Sakura headed towards the training grounds where a very irate Naruto was waiting.

"Sakura! Why are you so late? You're never late!" He rambled on quickly. "And why are you wearing those sunglasses!?"

Sakura couldn't help but smile as her friend stared at her, his brilliant blue eyes shining in the sun.

"Sorry Naruto, I had to go and see Tsunade, and I'm not going to be able to train with you today- I've got an appointment with her this afternoon. Something weird has happened." Her smile fell from her face as she removed her sunglasses. The light outside was pretty painful compared to the lower light that had been in her home and the tower, she couldn't hide her wince.

Naruto stepped closer to her, his large warm hands found place on either side of her face as he peered closely at her.

"Sakura- are you okay? What do you think this is?" His voice had dropped into a serious tone. "Are you sick?"

"I'm okay just a bad headache, and I don't have a clue as to what this is." She sighed. "Why don't you go train with Hinata today? I'm sure she'd appreciate it."

At the mention of his girlfriend's name Naruto's face fell. "We uh, I broke up with her Sakura- what she did to you was wrong." He took a slow breath. "And you're my family, if she has a problem with you then she has a problem with me."

Sakura placed her face in her hands, her heart felt like it was made of stone as it sluggishly pumped dread into her veins.

"Naruto you can't do that- I'm okay I promise- please go talk to her." Her eyes were wide as she looked at him, his blond hair glinted in the sunlight like gold. "I'm not going to be the reason for you two breaking up. Promise me you'll talk to her." Sakura refused to have made this sacrifice for Naruto not to be with the woman he clearly adored.

The man in front of her only shook his head, running a hand down his face to clear the sweat from his eyes. "But Sakura, she tried to call you a traitor to the village I-"

Sakura cut him off. "Naruto, I don't care what she did. She was confused okay? And she only did what she thought was best for Konoha- you can't fault her for that. Yes my feelings are hurt, and yeah I don't really want to be around her right now but you can't use me as a reason to end it. Please go talk to her, please?"

Naruto sighed and stared at her for several minutes- Sakura's heart thudded painfully in her chest.

Then he nodded and gave her one of those brilliant smiles of his that always made her feel as though her problems were nothing.

"I'll go talk to her now, if that's alright?" Sakura could see the blush on his cheeks. "I'll check on you some time tonight and you can tell me about your appointment, and we can reschedule our training session okay? Once you're all better that is." He followed up with a laugh and waved as he began his walk to the Hyuuga compound. "I'll see you later Sakura!"

The pinkette smile back and waved, her heart feeling just a little bit lighter.

-0-

Tsunade hated _all_ of her meetings but she hated the ones with the Elders the most. Their thinking was so archaic and always held a double meaning that every time the Hokage met with them it was sure to cause a headache.

But, as the leader of this village, she had promised to uphold the council meetings as all of the Hokage had before her. Although, she had a secret hope that when she finally began to groom the Uzumaki boy he would get a sense for how much the Council of Elders needed to be abolished, or at least refreshed with some younger faces.

In the beginning of the village, they had held an important task- helping the Hokage balance the interest of the leading clans along with those of the civilians that were under their protection, and they had started out as the first Hokage's teammates- at that time it made sense, but now that more and more people had been petitioned to join the council it was becoming more a hassle then a help. They were nothing but scatter brained old crooks that wanted nothing more than to throw a wrench in Tsunade's upkeep of the village.

And there was something off about Danzo that much was certain. The man had always given Tsunade the creeps but the past few months his requests became more and more outlandish, he wanted more and more children to enter into Root.

Tsunade had the sneaking suspicion that Danzo was beginning to stage a coup.

So with a heavy heart Tsunade walked her way into the meeting chamber and took her seat at the head of the long table, ready to debate more and more trivial things that had nothing to do with the oncoming war with Sound, and everything to do with raising their preferred parties higher into social standing with the rest of the village.

Tsunade was the first person there as usual and not too long after Danzo showed up. She could still sense that he was still pretty miffed about her refusal to grant permission for his request to gain more recruitments.

The honey-eyed Hokage only gave the man a blank faced stare as he glared daggers at her.

"Ah, Lady Hokage- are you ready to start the meeting?" Homura said from her left. She had arrived with the rest of the Elders in single file.

Tsunade only nodded and waited as the rest of the men and women took their seats.

She was in for a long day, that much was certain.

-0-

"Oh, hello… Naruto." The Hyuuga Heiress' voice was incredibly soft as she entered the small room reserved for seeing guests that didn't belong to the clan. "I wasn't too sure I'd be seeing you again." Her voice was sad.

"Hey Hinata, listen I wanted to talk to you- I've uh, done some thinking and I realized that maybe I was wrong." He smiled slightly and ran a hand through spiky golden hair.

"O-Oh?" Hinata's heart jumped into her throat. Was Naruto really going to forgive her? After what she had done to Sakura? She felt a shiver of fear at the thought of the pink haired medic. She was sure that Sakura's deal was only going to end badly for her and everyone close to her. Contracts with Kami, whether they were benevolent or malicious never ended well. Her thoughts drifted for a moment to the branch family members who's sealing ceremony she had attended last year, she would never be able to forget the horrible feel of dark chakra that had been used to seal their bodies in service to the main house. It had made her sick to her stomach and she had to close her eyes when the children were taken one by one by the hand of the old priest who would perform the sealing.

Her thoughts snapped to the present at the sound of Naruto's voice. When he spoke all dark thoughts left her mind just as quickly as they had entered.

"Yes, I'm really very sorry for what I said- I can understand that you only did what you thought was best for the village- Sakura helped me see that. Although I don't approve of what you did to her- and I do think you need to apologize- I'm still wanting to, uh, see you- if-if that's alright?" Naruto's words came out in a dizzying jumble and Hinata couldn't help the blush that rose to her cheeks.

"I would like that very much." She whispered quietly, a pale hand raised to her face to feel her steadily warming cheeks.

Naruto said nothing more, only gathered the moon-eyed girl into a crushing hug as he gave a loud boisterous laugh.

Hinata somehow managed to keep herself from fainting.

-0-

Sakura had been waiting at Tsunade' office for quite a while when the disgruntled woman finally arrived, before she let Sakura get a word in she already had a warm saucer of sake in her hand.

Only then would she let Sakura speak.

"Well that went _horribly_." Tsunade said with a grimace, her eyes were harrowed and Sakura noticed the telltale signs of bags forming under her eyes. "The Elders refuse to agree on anything because everyone and their mother conflicts with at least someone's interest- they're perfectly content on wasting everyone's time with trivial matters." Tsunade sighed heavily. "Anyway, are you ready for your appointment? He should be here soon.

Sakura nodded once. "I hope it's nothing too serious." She said with sympathy. "There has to be something you can get them to agree on."

Sakura paused. "He's meeting us here? I thought we would do the examination at the hospital?"

Tsunade smiled. "There are too many eyes and ears in that hospital, Sakura. With something as sensitive as a possible new blood line ability it's best we keep the information as controlled as possible, least things get blown out of proportion and we have another incident in our hands."

Sakura knew she was referring to the incident with Cloud, when they had attempted to steal one of the Hyuuga for their eyes- unsuccessfully of course, but a tragic event none the less.

Soon after there was a solid knocking at the door and Sakura could sense a chakra signature that she didn't recognize. This must be the new doctor.

"You may enter." Tsunade said, not making any effort to hide the alcohol she was gladly drinking.

A pale faced man entered the room. He was dressed in standard medical garb, long white coat- stethoscope, beige pants and shiny black shoes. Strangely, he was devoid of a name tag- which was protocol for anyone who worked in the hospital, however he could have been private practice- which would explain why Sakura had never met him.

"Doctor Tushino, it's been a long time." Tsunade said with a smile.

"Lady Tsunade, it is nice to see you again." The man bowed at the waist, then moved to close the door behind him. "This must be Sakura Haruno- I've heard a lot about you." His voice was warm and friendly, completely different than what Sakura was expecting. When Tsunade had said that the man attended the Hyuuga she assumed he had taken on their silent and acidic personality.

"Ah, yes- it is a pleasure to meet you, Doctor Tushino." Sakura stood and bowed, as she always did when she met someone older than herself. Her parents might have passed several years ago but she would never forget the manners her mother had drilled into her head.

"Tsunade has told me that you've had some problems with your eyes?" Sakura nodded and removed the sunglasses. The light was still painfully bright, and it took more self-control then she would like to admit to keep them open.

The doctor gestured for her to sit. "I see." His voice had suddenly become much graver.

"Tell me what kind of experiences you've had since you noticed this change?" His voice took on a very familiar tone that reminded Sakura of what she sounded like when she was working with a patient.

She looked to Tsunade for guidance and the woman only nodded once. This man could be trusted and it seemed as though he and Tsunade were friends.

Sakura sighed. "About a week ago I noticed that in the center of my eyes there was a strange, silver like dot- I did a scan on myself and didn't notice anything different- no infections or fever. Then this morning I awoke to a very severe headache, I couldn't tolerate light very well at all- and I was running a slight fever." She took a breath. "I managed to get my bathroom and turned off the light and when I looked into the mirror I noticed this." She pointed at her face with a grimace. "And the glow was noticeable in the dark."

Tushino nodded and wrote some more notes on the clipboard Sakura hadn't seen him pull out.

"Have you tried channeling chakra to the area?" He asked.

Sakura shook her head. "No, I was worried about the effects it would have, so I decided to see Lady Tsunade to see if she had some idea of what this was." He nodded once and scribbled on his board some more.

"I see." He took a breath. "It does not resemble any ability I have studied, but there are new mutations every generation it seems."

Sakura only nodded.

"I'm going to do an in depth scan of your eyes, you may feel some slight discomfort and pressure- also you will not be able to see as I do this, so please try not to move."

Sakura swallowed nervously but gave her consent. She was incredibly nervous of what he might find- would he notice the seals painted on her wrists?

She could only hope as she held her breath as Tushino's glowing hand was placed upon her eyes. Her vision went dark and for a very long moment she felt panic run through her veins brightly and it took all her willpower to stay completely still- least she move and possibly lose her eyesight permanently.

The discomfort she was expecting was nothing more than slight pressure- as though her eyes were slightly too big for her eye sockets.

Her heart thudded uncomfortable in her chest as the doctor methodically went through each structure of her eyes, leaving the iris for last. Eventually he pulled back, the energy that swirled around her retina retreated and Sakura let loose a long breath.

"Well?" Tsunade said from her desk. Sakura had forgotten she was there, she had been so quiet through the examination.

Tushino sighed as he looked to Tsunade. "She has what seemed to be something I have only heard of through old wives tales and very outdated medical journals." His face was grim. "It doesn't have an official name that I know of- but from what I remember it is just called the Sight." He gave a dry chuckle. "It was an ability that originated with a death cult in the mountains in snow country- before there were all wiped out in the war."

His words hung in the air for a moment before they came crashing through Sakura's ears, her stomach dropped and her heart jumped into her throat.

A _death_ cult.

That's exactly what Jashin had called it, the Sight. Did he know? Did he have any idea what this was? What she had done?

Sakura felt as though she was sweating bullets.

"That is very interesting." Tsunade said after a few moment, her amber eyes watching Sakura critically. "Sakura's parents passed several years ago- and they had no relatives within the village. Is it possible that she is a descendent of this- this cult?" Tsunade's voice hesitated at the mention, but her face gave away nothing as her gaze traveled to the doctor.

"Well it's possible yes, they had all been recorded as dead in the files I've read through, but it's entirely possible." Tushino nodded once in assurance. "People slip through the cracks all the time." He gave a wink to Sakura.

"Okay, then what does it do?" Tsunade asked, and Sakura could hear the curiosity eating in her voice. This wasn't something that happened every day after all.

"Well, that's when the records begin to get a little hazy you see- it's said that the ability is granted to those in the cult that had made a contract with the death Kami- but other records stated it is passed down genetically through the mother's line." He paused. "I've never actually found any material as to what this ability can do- I've only read very crude diagrams on how it changes the eyes structure. The glowing iris' is the main give away to this ability."

Sakura coughed to hide her gasp of fear- this was it they were going to make connections from Hinata's supposed accusation and this weird thing that had happened to her and she was going to be put to death. Would she end up in a hole in the middle of the woods like the Priest she was tasked with reviving? Or would they attempt to burn her 'remains'?

Sakura shivered as she thought of what that would feel like. They were going to find out about her deal.

So much for saving Naruto.

"Well that's obviously a load of crap." Tsunade said with a laugh, starling Sakura into making a nervous chuckle. "All this talk of death Kami is making me thirsty." The woman said with a grin as she poured herself some more sake.

Tushino chuckled and nodded. "I can suggest that Sakura try channeling very small amounts of chakra to the area to see if it can elicit a response- under your supervision of course, if nothing happens then it is safe to assume that she has merely inherited a dead ability from her mother's side- and it's entirely possible that the only ability this might have is to give off the eerie glow. It's easy to believe that this was merely a genetic mutation that occurred within a small village and was selectively bred to create this- more for looks than anything. Outsiders could have simply caused the rumors, and here we have our strange gift from a death Kami." Tushino's voice was light but analytical as he told his opinion. "I do not think you have anything to worry about, Sakura- the headache and light sensitivity occurred from such a rapid change in your eye structure. It should pass in a few days. I recommend staying in a dark room for a while and allow your eyes to rest."

Sakura only nodded quietly, her heart slowly coming to a normal pace. "Yes sir, thank you for taking the time to see me- I appreciate it." Her voice was a little shaky but he dismissed it as nerves. "If I notice anything else I will make sure to contact you."

With a bow to herself and the Hokage Tushino made his leave.

Once he was gone Tsunade turned to her apprentice that was very much like a daughter and smiled.

"Well, although your new eyes are very misleading it must be nice to know that nothing too serious has happened." Tsunade's voice was slurred slightly, and Sakura couldn't help the pained grin that spread across her features. The sake was beginning to kick in, that meant it was time to call Shizune to deal with a very drunk Hokage.

Sakura nodded and bid her farewell to her teacher, making sure to leave the traditional way to make mention of Tsunade's current condition to a very concerned Shizune in the lobby.

The dark haired woman thanked her, then rushed up the long spiraling stairs that made their way to the Hokage's office- her panicked shouts for Tsunade to stop and to put that bottle down so help me-

Sakura left the tower with a chuckle and a huge wash of relief at having gotten away from a very sticky situation.

She was out of the frying pan, now it seemed as though it was time for her to jump in the fire.

Only a few more weeks until she made true on her promise and defected from her village.

Sakura cried quietly to herself the rest of the way home, the relief she had felt at the news of her practically useless eyes had been washed away in the throes of grief at the things she would lose.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Welcome to chapter five, I hope you enjoy.

-0-

Although Sakura wanted nothing more than to lay in her bed and sleep away her sorrow, it seemed as though Jashin had other plans.

As soon as the door to her apartment was shut behind her, he materialized- silver eyes wide with glinting mischief as he stared her down, a crooked smile on his face.

"What?" She asked quietly, wiping away the remnants of dried tears from her face.

"You're going to unearth my Priest tonight." His voice although low held a spark of what Sakura recognized as excitement. The look on his face made her sick to her stomach.

Her head was pounding but she managed to get out a resounding 'no', followed with a disgruntled look.

"I can't, I'm nowhere near prepared and I hadn't planned on- on _leaving_, until at least the beginning of next month." She stuttered on that part, her heart doing flip flops in her chest.

"You have awakened the Sight, yes?" He asked quietly, his voice soft on her ears.

Sakura nodded, but gave him a confused look. "My eyes glow but that's it." She deadpanned. "It doesn't do anything, Tsunade and a specialist looked at it." At her words the God smiled wider, his pearly white teeth shining in the low light of her apartment.

"Mortals are unable to comprehend the seals that have awoken in your eyes, girl. Do you really think I would let something this powerful be reproduced by others that don't follow the faith?" His smile dropped and his tone was scathing. "The Full Moon Eyes are something that this world hasn't seen in two hundred years." The feral grin was back. "And you will use it to unearth Hidan tonight- for the moon is dark and that's when it is most powerful."

Sakura scoffed. "I don't even know how to use whatever this is," she pointed to her eyes "how do you expect me to infiltrate the Nara compound with half-formed plans? I will surely be caught, and disposed of." Although her voice was clinical and slow her heart was hammering in her chest at the prospect of being caught committing treason.

"Activate your seals Priestess." His voice was honey thick as he appeared behind her, his hands grasping her wrists firmly, thumbs pressed over the seals there. Sakura managed to keep herself still as she felt him encircle her.

His presence was intoxicating, and Sakura assumed that was due to his being Kami in nature, she had trouble concentrating but eventually she obeyed, her chakra turning into dark crackling energy as it cycled itself through the points on her wrists.

She was immediately brought back to memories of her first ritual, Jashin's soft voice soothing as he coached her on how to convert her chakra by cycling it through the seals. It became something with a mind of its own, her once mint green healing energies became prickling purple points of heat that danced around her body gleefully, waiting for the blood she would spill.

His voice snapped her back to the present.

"Now, take that energy and center it within the seals in your eyes." His tone was low and soft, the sound slid over Sakura like warm water. She did as she was told, careful to direct the eager energies to her newly changed eyes.

The effect was not immediate and Sakura began to feel self-conscious as she became intimately aware of his naked form pressed against her back, and although he was a Kami he felt warm and soothing. Sakura shivered and to her embarrassment she heard an answering chuckle from Jashin.

"Now," he whispered into her ear "remember."

Then the whole world changed.

_Everything turned into a ghostly blue-white that was almost too bright for her too see- then she saw herself, or at least a version of herself. _

The other-Sakura titled her head with a ghost of a smile on her lips- and although her form was bleached of color Sakura noticed that her eyes were a blinding silver. The woman stepped forward, and with each passing second color bled into her. Her hair became the soft shining pink that was so familiar, her simple white dress became one of a startlingly dark blue- the bands around her upper arms bled into gold and with one final movement the other-Sakura became real.

"Ah, your last life." Jashin mumbled quietly in her ear. "She will be able to tell you what you need to do."

Then Jashin disappeared and Sakura was left with herself, literally.

"You're… me?" She whispered, incredulous.

The other woman gave a tinkling laugh that reminded Sakura of her mother's long forgotten wind chimes.

"Yes, I was you- once upon a time." The other-Sakura smiled softly. "You've sold your soul again, have you?" She took a breath. "Your eyes and our meeting is a testament to that." She laughed again, it was a bitter sound that made Sakura's heart ache.

"What? How did you know?" Sakura fumbled, her hands wringing as she tried to make some sort of sense of what she was seeing.

"We do it every time, Sakura." The other woman said softly. "Every life we have ever lived we give it away- for a better life, for a chance of survival, for power." Her silver eyes were sad as she continued. "I gave it last time for the power to save my people. We were dying in a needless war, every plot that had been made for peace was thwarted, and so I made a sacrifice- for the good of my people, I sold my soul for the power needed to defeat our enemy." She paused for a breath. "And Jashin answered."

Sakura shook her head as tears gathered in her eyes. Her breath was stilted in her throat as she tried her best to keep the tears from falling.

"Was it worth it?" Sakura asked quietly.

The other woman nodded once. "We won the war." She smiled. "I was murdered upon the battlefield by my husband, and when I arose I was in service to Jashin." Her eyes fell to the floor. "I took my revenge." Her voice was bitter. "What did you give it for this time?"

Sakura shook with unshed tears. "I did it to save my friend." Her voice quivered but she managed to keep eye contact. "I did it for Naruto."

"What was the price?"

"I've…" Sakura swallowed thickly. "I've become his… Priestess." A lump formed in her throat.

The other woman shot her a look of knowing. "Seems he's keeping to the trend then. That was my price as well as the life before mine. When you grow tired of the world, as I did, he will offer you the choice to be reborn again Sakura- and this cycle with continue until the end of time." She sighed softly and reached a hand to touch Sakura's face.

When she made contact there was a whisper of words she didn't understand and suddenly there were images, feelings, thoughts that weren't her own were coursing through her mind. The shock was so surprising that she lost the hold she had on her chakra and the world turned to its normal state.

Sakura fell to the floor and clutched her head.

Everything went black.

-0-

Sakura awoke with another headache and she blearily wondered if this was going to be how she woke up from now on- excruciating pain that lanced behind her eyes.

She sighed softly and lifted a glowing green hand to her forehead, luckily she was able to alleviate the pain to a more tolerable level.

Her mind felt… cracked. There was something there that didn't belong to her- thoughts and feelings that felt misplaced and lost.

They didn't belong to her.

An errant thought crossed her mind, if the little crumbling voice in her back of her mind was right then she would be able to enact her plan- despite her half formed renditions of the Nara compound.

She- yes, she knew what she needed to do now, and although the thoughts swirling in her mind weren't exactly hers she held a kind of heartbreaking confidence that would give her the power to do what she had promised.

So with a heavy heart Sakura climbed to her feet, where her tired silver eyes met those of Jashin- he had been watching her sleep again.

"What time is it?" She asked blearily, wiping the sweat off her brow.

"Doesn't matter, the sun won't be up for several more hours- you will have plenty of time." His voice was a soft cadence that made her dizzy. How was he able to affect her so?

Sakura scoffed, and turned away from him.

She had written several letters to Naruto that she had kept on hand for when she left- with instructions on not to look for her, and that what she was doing wasn't exactly what it seemed, and that she hoped he had a great life with Hinata and that hopefully they could meet again one day.

Silent tears escaped her eyes as she placed them upon her table within plain view for when he would inevitably tear through her possessions for some hint as to where he would find her.

He would find nothing.

Sakura loosed the floorboard in her room and lifted out her rough plans for the Nara compound along with the pack she had stashed there. It held the few things she considered precious, the first picture of them as team seven, the kunai that Kakashi had lent her during their first practice, a note from Naruto, the necklace that her mother had left her.

She quickly set fire to the map she had drawn, waiting until the ashes had cooled for her to blow them away.

Sakura stood, and gave one last longing gaze to her apartment.

She knew she had been standing there for several moments when Jashin materialized before her with a crooked smile.

"Come." He said, voice like silk that slid over her skin.

Sakura's heart calmed, and she stopped shaking. She tasted ashes in her mouth but at least she had a steady hand.

The pinkette nodded once to him then turned and jumped through her sliding glass door to land daintily upon the gravel path below.

With barely a grimace she focused her chakra through her seals, and twisted the power behind her eyes and within seconds her chakra slid over her skin like water- staining her form with the darkest black she had ever seen.

With the ability to turn herself into shadows she would have no problem sneaking into the compound undetected.

-0-

Her walk to the compound was a quick one, as long as she stayed away from any of the streetlights she was literally undetectable.

When she entered the compound with nary a glance from the chunin on duty she felt her scalp prickle uncomfortably. Something was wrong, she just couldn't place her finger on it.

Sakura managed to make it to the entrance of the Forest. The thick band of rope swayed gently in the wind.

She had wanted to just cut the damn thing off, but before she could touch the rope Jashin's hand shot out to grab her wrist- stopping her.

"_Don't_ touch it." His fevered whispered reached her ears as his other hand found its way to the back of her neck. Sakura shivered and gooseflesh raced across her bare arms. His hand was unnaturally warm, but Sakura did as he warned and dropped her hand.

"Then what should I do?" Her voice was much harsher compared to his. "The rope is the barrier into the woods, if I attempt to cross it without whatever secret the Nara have then alarms will start going off all along the compound."

Jashin merely bared his teeth in annoyance. "I am a _God_, mere human seals mean nothing to death." His voice was sharp. He moved away from her and placed two fingers upon the rope- where his hand touched the thick material turned black and sizzled away until nothing but ash remained. The transparent shimmering of seals the rope had held faded into nothing.

Several second passed and then Sakura deemed it safe enough to pass into the forest.

The passage before her was flanked by thick trees on either side and the darkness was impenetrable, but Sakura pressed on- Jashin's shadow following her like a wisp.

-0-

It didn't take Sakura too long to find the place where Shikamaru's battle with Hidan had occurred. Remnants of burned ninja wire laid in a tangled heap within the clearing.

The stone before her was almost as big as her whole apartment and was held thick with rope and sealing tags.

Just as before, Jashin moved forward and placed two fingers upon the glistening stone, the seals simply dissolved along with the rope as it smoked into ash.

Then Sakura got to work.

It was exhausting to hold up her shadow cover for this long so with a quiet sigh she directed the energy into her hands, and began to carefully move the giant boulder from where she was sure the Priest had been buried.

Several hours of digging later, Sakura had managed to make a hole that was at least ten feet deep- when her dirt encrusted fingers grasped upon silky silver hair and pulled- and with a sickening squelch she unearthed Hidan's head. His eyes were open but had glazed over white.

"You're going to have to put him back together." Jashin's voice said from atop the hole with a chuckle. "That man always did practice the faith to the most extremes, and look where it got him." His mood turned sour and Sakura felt a subtle shift in her air.

She ignored the God and set upon digging out the rest of the man's limbs.

After several more grueling hours of digging with her hands, she had managed to dig out all the pieces to the living corpse and had them in the largest burlap sack she could find within her house. He was heavy but with her strength she was more than able to manage.

She jumped out of the hole, trying her best to wipe the dirt that caked her hands off onto her apron to no avail, then she heard the voice.

"Sakura… what are you _doing_?"

Shikamaru stood before her, lit cigarette dangling from his open mouth as she stared at her with wide brown eyes.

Sakura's heart sank into her stomach as she turned to face her once friend.

"Shikamaru, you- you wouldn't understand…" Her voice was brittle but she pushed on. "I'm doing this for the good of the village." Her voice cracked, and tears fell from her eyes.

"I- I can't let you leave with that- that monster!" His voice raised in volume and Sakura saw with a gut wrenching sadness that his hands had formed into his signature move. His shadow reached across the clearing to attempt to snare her, but she had been quicker- activating her eyes to cloak herself into shadow, his jutsu not finding its target.

"Sakura! Don't do this! You know it's considered treason!" Shikamaru's voice was frantic as she sent out tendrils to try and find her. "You know I have to tell the Hokage!"

"I know," she whispered to herself softly as she sped away through the forest. "I know..."

Shikamaru didn't follow her.

Sakura had little time to escape, and so she channeled more chakra into her legs and made great leaping bounds through the rest of the forest, her arms were scratched deeply every time she broke through the canopy. Her tears dried sticky on her skin.

-0-

Sakura didn't stop running until the sun had risen and set again, she needed as much space between her and Konoha as possible.

Within an hour of her departure hunter teams had been dispersed and Sakura didn't want to find out what their orders were.

She had run halfway to Rain before she decided to stop and take a break. She was dead tired and could use some sleep. The small cave she had found was really nothing more than a depression within a large stone, it overlooked a small stream and Sakura deemed it safe.

Jashin had been silent the entire trip, but he had stayed visible almost the whole time- only disappearing when she had stopped for water.

Sakura laid down upon her mostly soaked bedroll and managed to catch three hours of sleep, it was fitful and full of tears. But it was enough to get her through.

When she woke it was to a muffled voice coming from the burlap sack she had left near her pack. Jashin appeared before her with a strange glint in his eye.

"I woke him." His voice was monotone and the look on his face left much to be desired. "You'll need to reassemble him."

Sakura only sighed wearily and moved to sit next to the angry burlap sack.

"Hey! What the FUCK am I doing in here?" Sakura didn't respond, his tasteless language made her angry.

She removed his head from the sack and sat it next to her, out of reach from his teeth.

"Hey bitch! Answer me! Who the fuck are you?" Hidan's voice was rough, and she could hear the tatters of his vocal cords trying to stich themselves together.

"Hidan." Jashin appeared before the talking head, his silver eyes ablaze with fire. "You failed me so severely." The God gave the man a sneer. "You are a disgrace."

"Jashin." Hidan's voice grew quiet. "I-" The God hushed him.

"You will make your failure up to me." His voice was commanding, and totally different than the way he spoke to Sakura. "You will serve her, and the two of you will rebuild my shrine." Pearly white teeth shined in the firelight.

"Serve that whore? Why the fuck would I do that? She's nothing but a bratty-"

Sakura turned and with a quick flick of her wrist she smacked his head so hard she was sure his jaw was broken, he let out a garbled shout as he rolled and smacked against the side of Sakura's little cave. Her silver eyes blazed with fury and were wide with unshed tears, but she didn't let them fall.

Several moments passed before Sakura noticed that Jashin had floated over to where the severed head lay.

"You-"Hidan's eyes turned to Jashin "-she's?" His voice caught, and Sakura thought she might have heard tears gather in his violet eyes.

"This is my new Honored _Priestess_, Hidan, and you will obey her- for her will is _mine_." Jashin's voice was sharp and cutting, effectively silencing the bad mouthed man, and if Sakura did say so herself- the smallest bit possessive.

Sakura said nothing, just busied herself with reattaching the mangled parts of his torso together.

Once she had managed to piece together the rest of his body, Sakura angrily grabbed Hidan's head by his silken hair- she was most definitely rougher than she needed to be, but with the words he had called her he deserved it- and placed it upon his torso- her green chakra lit up her hands for the tenth time since she had started and worked on connecting the frayed nerves and skin back together.

The rest of his wounds could heal on their own, Sakura was dead tired and she turned away from the now whole man and climbed back upon her bedroll where she promptly fell asleep for longer than was probably needed.

-0-

When she awoke, the sun was high in the sky and she was alone. Her breath caught in her throat once more and she cried silently for several moments until she was sure there was no more moisture within her battered body.

Her soul was tired and it felt as though she would never be whole again.

Her knees raised to her chest and she gripped them tightly, digging crescents into the bare skin of her legs until blood ran in thin rivulets down into her boots. The small wounds healed quickly, and the blood dried before she noticed that Jashin was watching her silently from the other side of the dead fire. She met his eyes and for several moments they stared at each other until the strange connection was broken by a loud shout.

"_You goddamn fucking fish_! Hold still dammit!" The shouting came from one very irate and very naked Hidan who had thought it best that he fish with a very large rock by attempting to smash the creatures to death.

Sakura didn't advert her eyes, she was used to Jashin flaunting his nakedness to her that it barely phased her when the white haired man turned around waving his arms angrily in their direction.

"I have rations you imbecile." Sakura hissed from the cave, her voice loud and managed to break through the haze of anger that had settled itself over Hidan's mind.

"Well why didn't you say so?!" He shouted back as he climbed back up towards their small camp.

Sakura said nothing, merely threw the tightly wrapped package at the man, where it hit him square in the chest. A ball of clothing came next and Sakura didn't turn away while he got dressed. Her eyes were dead as she tore into her own ration, her hunger had come back with a fierceness that made her light headed.

They ate in silence, and Sakura refused to catch Hidan's eyes as he stared her down.

Eventually though, Sakura stood- grabbing her spare clothes. She was going to wash herself in the creek before they set back out on their journey, she smelled of sweat and death and there was an alarming amount of blood and dirt caked under her nails that made her uncomfortable.

"Don't follow me." She said quietly as she passed the man who only gave her an angry stare.

The water was incredibly cool on her skin as she waded into one of the deeper parts of the pool she had found a good ways from the camp. She sat on a smooth rock and began to methodically clean under her nails until they were as clean as possible with the harsh soap that she kept with her for missions.

Her hair was long and muddy from her digging escapade earlier and it was next to be washed, even though she knew the soap would make it dry and unmanageable for days.

Sakura had been soaking in the cool water for several minutes when she felt her pendent warm against her chest. Despite everything it represented she never took it off, she had developed a strange kind of attachment to the metal. It had changed who she was and was a milestone in her new life.

Jashin approached her, his form solid as he too slid into the pool. He took up a space directly across from her.

Sakura could feel that he was pleased, and that made her stomach turn in revulsion. This being had made her throw away everything she was and had the gall to be happy about it, and before Sakura opened her mouth to give him a peace of her mind- she stopped.

He was death, and death cared for _nothing_. It wouldn't matter what she said to him, Sakura had made this deal of her own free will- she deserved everything that came out of it. Her teeth clacked together angrily in her mouth, Jashin only chuckled to himself.

"You Priest is quiet a piece of work." Sakura said as she slid her eyes closed and sunk deeper into the pool. "I'm surprised you let such a foul mouthed man do your dirty work." She huffed, opening one silver eye a crack to take in the other beings expression.

"He was quiet the devoted follower when he first made the vows." Jashin's voice was quiet but held a heady quality that made Sakura shiver. "He was the only one to survive the purging." Jashin's eyes were locked on her form and despite the fact that she was naked, she didn't care.

"How do you do that?" She asked quietly. "How can you control my emotions so easily?" She sounded tired.

The God gave a bark of a laugh. "I am a Kami, we can do what we please." His tone suddenly became quite serious. "I… will concede to stop if it bothers you."

Sakura's eyes widened in shock and she sputtered. "I-" she paused. "Why would you care if it bothers me?" Her voice was harsh, and her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Jashin sighed quietly to himself, leaning his head back to rest upon one of the rocks behind him.

"You do not remember." It wasn't a question, and there was a hint of sorrow in his voice. "Perhaps one day you will." His voice was a quiet sigh.

They sat for several more moments before Sakura decided to speak again.

"You talk of things as though I should remember them." She shifted forward until she was grasping her knees again. "Why is that?" Her voice was soft.

For a very long moment Jashin stared back at Sakura with heavy silver eyes.

"One day you will remember." He whispered softly and faded from her sight, leaving small ripples in the water that brushed against her knees with a strange warmth that made Sakura feel lost.

-0-

Eventually Sakura raised her tired form out of the pool, and clothed herself. This outfit was different from her standard medic gear.

Due to the nature of her new life Sakura needed to be as discreet as possible. Her top was a sleeveless high necked black shirt with matching shorts. Gone was the beige medic skirt, replaced with a simple wrap that knotted tightly below her navel.

Her new clothes were simple and dark.

The hardest part was removing her headband. The weathered metal had seen her through a lot in her career as a ninja, and it represented everything she had left behind.

Her old life was now nothing more than a memory, and so with a face that looked much braver than she felt, Sakura held the red fabric tightly in her hand- a kunai in the other, and with a strangled sob she dragged the sharp implement through the symbol of her home- through the symbol of her old life.

The Sakura of Konoha was now gone, all she was now was a hollowed shell of a girl.

And if this is what it took to keep her home and her friends safe then so be it.

Sakura would sacrifice everything if she had too.

-0-

A/N: Okay, so this chapter really got away with me. I hope you liked it!


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: I'm back! And moving into dorms for school once again in a few weeks, so I'll have sort of reliable internet and hopefully a more weekly kind of update schedule (maybe)

Enjoy!

-0-

"What do you mean she's gone!?" The shout could be heard halfway across the village.

Naruto's eyes were red rimmed as he banged a bleeding fist onto the top of the Hokage's desk. A sizeable dent had been made in the heavy wood. The two Jonin that were ever present in her office made no move to dissuade Naruto from his outburst.

Tsunade's eye mirrored the man before her.

"She had unearthed the Akatsuki buried within the Nara compound." Shikamaru said with a quiet voice, he took a long thoughtful drag on his cigarette. "She said that is was for the good of the village." He paused, tendrils of smoke leaking from his nostrils as he finally exhaled. "There was a shadow with her, I only saw it for a moment but there was definitely another… presence with her." He looked towards Tsunade, his eyes unreadable. "Do you think this is some kind of mind control thing?"

Naruto turned to face the pale faced man.

"Why didn't you stop her!?" Naruto's voice was fierce as he grasped the collar of Shikamaru's shirt, his fist shook slightly.

"I tried Naruto but she just vanished! I couldn't find her anywhere, no chakra or anything!" The brunette's voice was rising as he forcefully pushed Naruto away from him.

"There has to be a reason for this." Naruto's voice trembled. "Someone must have threatened her!"

"No, Naruto that isn't why she left." A very soft voice came from the door.

The Hyuuga Heiress walked into the Hokage's office with her head held high, long dark locks of hair swinging gently to frame her face as she took position in front of the Hokage's desk.

"Lady Tsunade, I have information regarding Sakura's disappearance." Although Hinata's voice was strong it was easy to see the tremble in her pale fingers as she gripped the hem of her jacket.

Naruto's voice became ragged as he spoke. "You… knew she was going to leave?" He took a deep breath. "And you weren't going to stop her?!"

-0-

Sakura was tired.

Her bones ached from sleeping on the ground the night before and her eyes felt sore from her near constant crying.

And gods did she hate Hidan.

The man was brash and his language was foul, it made Sakura's temper flare every time he spoke.

Jashin had not reappeared since their conversation in the creek the night before. She was glad at least to not have to deal with the strange feelings he brought about. His cryptic comments had left her mind whirring.

He obviously had known her past lives, but the way he spoke sometimes seemed as though there was more to it than that. It made her head hurt every time she thought about it.

"What's your name?"

Sakura snapped out of her reverie, silver eyes trained on the figure to her left. She didn't say anything.

"What are you, deaf?" Hidan scoffed. "I asked you a fucking question!" He was dressed in only a loose fitting pair of pants that she had found in her spare pack, his silver hair was dingy looking and there was still dirt smattered all over the visible parts of his torso.

"My name is Sakura." She said after a few moments.

"Fitting." He sneered, facing away from her and turned back to the path.

Sakura sighed, but nodded in agreement even though he wasn't looking at her anymore. That was the usual response whenever someone new learned her name.

"Where are we going anyway?" His question was soft and Sakura almost didn't hear it.

"Jashin didn't tell you?" Her voice was squeaky and it made her cheeks turn pink. For someone who was so devoted to death she had assumed that he would hold the God's favor.

He turned to face her. "My master only told me to do as you say." He closed his eyes for a brief moment and squeezed the pendent that matched hers. "You are lucky to be so close to him." Hidan's tone was reverent. "Priestess are the only ones able to hold sustained communion with Lord Jashin."

Sakura gritted her teeth. "I am far from lucky." She hissed. "I don't understand why anyone would want to join this willingly."

The white haired man gave her a vicious look but didn't say anything.

Several more minutes passed before either of them spoke again, and it was Hidan who broke the silence.

"You didn't answer my question." He commented, lavender eyes narrowed at her with disdain. "I assume there is some great fucking plan at work?"

Sakura scoffed at his language but indulged him anyway.

"We are going to the Shrine where I summoned Jashin, to rebuild." The words made her throat raw and her teeth ache.

"You… summoned him? By yourself?" Hidan's voice held a tinge of surprise that he tried to hide.

"Yes, I did."

He only stared at her once more, eyes no longer holding as much animosity as before.

Sakura brushed him off and kept walking.

-0-

"Sakura sold her soul to seal the Kyuubi within Naruto permanently."

Hinata's words hung heavy in the air and for several moments Tsunade only looked at the girl with shock on her face.

"What do you mean?" Tsunade's voice was hoarse but that could have just been from the sake.

"When Sakura was on her last mission, she told me that she had stopped in a small village where she summoned the same power that the Hyuuga use in their sealing rituals. She bargained her soul to seal the Kyuubi within Naruto so that when he dies the beast does as well." Hinata's pearly gaze was focused on the floor before her and her shoulder were shaking with the force it took to keep her voice steady. "She said that she did this because his seal was staring to fade."

"I do not know why she left." The girl paused to take a heavy breath. "But the… the demon was with her when she came back, I saw it with my own eyes." At that she bravely lifted her head, pearl colored eyes locking steadily with the amber ones across from her.

"She… Sakura did that for me?" Naruto choked, his hands fisting at his sides. "She gave her life?"

Tsunade's eyes closed slowly, and the now incredibly pale woman took a deep breath and rubbed her tired eyes.

"We will send a squad for her." She said simply, signaling to Shikamaru. "You, Kakashi, and Shino will head this mission… and Naruto?" Amber eyes opened to meet brilliant blue. The boy nodded in response. "You will join them." The Hokage hung her head. "Leave immediately."

Within several seconds the Jonin filed out of the room.

"This is why she was asking about sealing scrolls within the vault." Tsunade said with tears in her eyes. "I just thought it was simple curiosity, perhaps to honor Jiraiya in some way." Her head hung low as she took a heavy gulp from her sake cup. "I guess I was wrong."

-0-

Sakura had wanted to stop for the night but Hidan had insisted that they keep moving. She had voiced her concerns about running out of chakra due to her low levels from reattaching him the day before but the man only smirked at her as he took the lead.

"You will be dying soon." His comment had come out of nowhere and at first Sakura had thought that maybe she had misheard him.

"I'm sorry, what?" Her voice was incredulous but curious all the same.

"You will be dying soon, that's why we can't stop until we're at the Shrine." His words were solemn as his gaze met hers, and Sakura was ashamed to feel her cheeks heat. "When you awaken again then we can start rebuilding."

Sakura coughed once in surprise. "What are you talking about?"

Hidan sighed heavily, lavender eyes narrowed in annoyance. "That's how this works- yeah you've got some abilities now but you will die- and when you come back it when the real stuff starts happening." His voice held an edge that only served to confuse Sakura more. "How else would you serve a death kami if you weren't dead?"

Sakura stopped, her pink hair flying around her head like a halo.

"I'm going to die?" Her voice was stiff as she looked at the man once more. "Then reawaken as what, some kind of zombie?" Her silver eyes were wide and glowing in the steadily fading light.

Hidan let out a loud bark of a laugh, eyes closing as the sound reverberated through the suddenly silent air.

Sakura's gaze was persistent, and she refused to move another step until he clarified on his cryptic remarks. He didn't answer her, only chuckled once more and kept walking.

Sakura shook her head wondering what the hell she had gotten herself into but followed him to the darkening forest before them.

-0-

Naruto had been holding back tears for the past two hours as Pakkun barked that her scent had changed so much so quickly that it was blending into the surroundings too well for him to follow much longer.

Naruto only clenched his fist and didn't say anything.

After his newfound knowledge about why his seal had disappeared he had tried to talk to Kurama but the beast was being stubborn and refused to speak to him. Perhaps he was angry at finally being bested, Naruto didn't know, but his silence was maddening and the blond haired boy wanted to punch something.

Kakashi must have sensed what he was feeling for the older male placed a hand on his shoulder, and squeezed once. "We will find her." He said quietly. "And we will find out what happened."

Naruto didn't speak, not trusting his voice, but nodded once anyways.

They pressed forward, following Shikamaru as he did his best to follow the very few signs she had left.

As time went on it was looking more and more bleak that they would find her.

Naruto would be damned if another of his precious people left him.

The team pressed forward.

-0-

Sakura didn't notice the fatigue at first.

They had been travelling for several hours before her vision wavered for the first time. The effect was so jarring she stumbled slightly, her shoulder banging into Hidan's who glared at her.

"I don't…" She mumbled quietly, she was so tired her bones were refusing to cooperate and her next few steps were fumbling attempts at keeping her upright- until she fell, face meeting the cold dirt with a painful thud.

Her vision went dark, and then the pain started.

She was breathing but no air was entering her lungs, and for a moment she was hyperaware of a set of warm arms lifting her from the ground- then her heart stopped and Sakura knew for the first time what a heart attack felt like.

The medic was panicking, and she tried in vain to send her healing energies towards her chest to manually pump her heart but her chakra wasn't listening to her anymore- instead of moving towards where she was hurting the most she felt the energy center behind the points on her wrists.

Her seals activated- and this time, instead of the purple hungry energy that usually came forth from the seals- black chakra started to spill from them, almost like ink as it began a slow and steady drip upwards towards her chest.

She felt as though someone had set her on fire- but she couldn't move. Her muscles had begun to seize and cramp as they were no longer receiving an oxygenated blood supply and Sakura began to shake against her will.

Sakura had never felt this much pain before, and she liked to think that she had a pretty high pain threshold- but nothing could ever compare to this.

Her voice was hoarse as it left her lips but the girl began to scream the most heart wrenching sound until blood gurgled up past her lips and then she was silent again- no longer able to draw any breath as her lungs collapsed.

She went limp, everything went dark and Sakura knew no more.

-0-

Hidan knew exactly when it started to happen.

The first sign was a slight waver in her step, then her speech began to slur.

And for several long moments Hidan stopped moving as he watched in a sick sort of fascination as the brightly colored woman began to die.

Once she had fallen to the ground he felt a moment of panic.

Now, normally, Hidan didn't give a rat's ass about anyone but Jashin and himself- but this girl was so much more than that. She was a _Priestess_, the first one in several hundred years- and the white haired man only had a few very hazy memories of who the last one was- as she had been released from service before he had begun to solidly follow the faith.

But he did remember that stark reverence the older Priest's had payed to her- he had felt the power she had been gifted fade from the world when she had been released.

She was the pinnacle of the religion- the only one who could summon their God, and for this at least, made Hidan sigh heavily under his breath had he moved down to lift the now dying woman from the ground.

She was the last, and it was then that Hidan promised himself that he would watch over her as Jashin had tasked him to do.

He needed to get her to the Shrine.

Time was running out.

-0-

Hinata didn't know what to do with herself. After her report to Tsunade, she had wandered aimlessly through the emptying streets of her home until the sun had sunk beneath the horizon and the streetlight blinked into life.

Seeing Naruto in such distress made her heart hurt and her limbs tremble with the unbearable need to do something, anything- but Tsunade had decided against the pearl eyed girl attending the retrieval mission.

There had to be something she could do to help Naruto. She was his girlfriend and hopefully would one day be his wife, there had to be something she could do.

That's when the idea struck her.

The Hyuuga had been summoning the sealing arts of the death kami since the beginning of their formation, there had to be something within her family archives that could shine some more light on Sakura's disappearance.

With determined eyes Hinata headed for the Hyuuga compound, daring to use the power of Heiress to plow through whatever secrets her father had been hiding about their sealing rituals.

-0-

Hidan had no trouble finding his way to the shrine.

He had attended his first ritual here, sacrificing his first victim under the approving eyes of one of the other Priests.

The girl he had offered up was young, barely able to call herself a woman and had fought tooth and nail against him. His movements had been clumsy and messy, drenching himself with her blood. And for several long moments Hidan regretted everything up to that point in his life.

But then the euphoria hit him hard, and he fell to the floor screaming in ecstasy as he seal on the back of his neck lit with such a forceful amount of chakra that he passed out.

When he awoke, he was given an amulet- and from there he was addicted.

The pleasure he felt from sacrificing was something that no one had warned him about, and for several decades he went berserk- murdering anyone he could get his hands on.

Then the Order of Priest's fell soon after the last Priestess had been released.

And for several long _long_ years of isolation, Hidan didn't know what to do with himself.

He still made the sacrifices in the name of Jashin, and he still felt the blinding pleasure that came with it- but he felt hollow inside.

Was this really all there was going to be to his life?

Then the Akatsuki came into the picture, and the silver haired man was given purpose once again, despite the fact that it was one he didn't much care for.

He shook his head to clear the memories that had begun to cloud his thoughts.

He didn't have time to revel in his memories, he needed to get this girl to the shrine so that she could complete her first rite.

Once Sakura had fallen limp, her skin had lost all heat and for all intents and purposes, she was dead. No pulse. No breathing.

Hidan sighed heavily as he shifted her into a fireman carry.

The Shrine wasn't too far away now, maybe another half hour if he ran. Hidan wasn't known for his speed, in fact he was by far the slowest member of the Akatsuki, but when he really needed to he could catch short burst of speed. This was what he did now.

-0-

Sakura felt like she was floating.

Her arms were outstretched from her body, legs straight and crossed delicately at the ankles.

For a long time she just laid there, relishing in the steadily pulsing warmth she felt radiating from her wrists.

Then she heard a voice.

"Sakura."

The rosette cracked one eye open, not wanting to lose the easy comfort she had found.

"Sakura."

There it was again, coming from directly above her.

She opened one silver eye- and was not surprised at all to see the widely smiling visage of Jashin looming over her.

"What." Her voice was flat as she shifted slightly, lifting her arms above her head and stretched, a small sigh left her lips when she realized she was naked. She didn't much care at this point, the fatigue that had been plaguing her for days had finally been shucked from her shoulder and she was more than content to lay splayed out on the stone floor until she withered away.

Her cares seemed so far away and insignificant.

"Sakura." His tone had switched to one of warning, and for a long second it sounded so familiar that it gave her a sense of vertigo.

She sat up wearily, pink hair cascading down her chest to offer a small bit of modesty. She rubbed her eyes until when she opened then they no longer felt as though she had been sleeping for far too long.

"Where am I?" She asked, her surroundings finally registering with her. She was no longer within the wasted forest she had been traversing with Hidan, but was in the middle of a lush, bright green clearing.

She rested in a small shrine, nothing too much more than light colored stone with a matching roof. The floor was rounded, and there were a total of eight pillars that held the ceiling up. It reminded her of the ruins she would sometimes see when visiting far off countries.

She liked to think that these kinds of places were once home to smaller nature Kami, but those were whimsical thoughts that had no place with her.

"You've been here many times." Jashin mused, looking off into the surrounding forest. "This was where we first met, so many, _many _years ago." His voice trailed off softly.

Sakura had moved to stand next to him.

"I'm… sorry that I do not remember…?" Her voice was quizzical, the fear and foreboding she normally felt around him seemed to have disappeared.

He only nodded once, silver hair moving gently in the breeze.

Sakura looked at him, his profile was stark- the darkness of his skin left such contrast with the light colored stone that Sakura couldn't help but state at him. He didn't move as she stared at him- and she blinked once, silver eyes widening as light flashed before her eyes-

_She was young, barely older than sixteen the first time she had seen him. Her mother had tasked her with leaving a small offering of flowers at Amaterasu's shrine at the edge of their village. _

_Her basket had been carefully laden with bright colorful flowers. She picked a few more on her way to the shrine. _

_She had finally crested the clearing when she noticed that she was no longer alone- there was another at the base of the shrine, kneeling with his head bowed- hand interlocked beneath his chin. Sakura kept her distance to allow the other person privacy while they prayed. She kept herself busy with the wildflowers that grew around the oval shaped clearing. _

_Once her basket was filled to bursting, she turned to see the man was watching her. _

"_Hello." She said softly, tilting into a small bow that was custom to greeting strangers. "I hope your prayer is answered." She said with a smile. "Amaterasu is kind on sunny days." Her brilliant green eyes turned towards the clear blue sky._

_The man remained silent. He was tall, but not too much older than her. His skin was pale, and his eyes were a very light shade of green that reminded her of her own, his hair was long and flowing, longer than her own and a stark white._

"_I'm Sakura." She took a step forward, and offered him one of the many flowers that were stacked in her basket. _

"_I am Jashin." He answered, and gave her a dazzling smile- Sakura blushed as he took the proffered flower, turning to place it upon the shrine. He bowed with his offering and turned to extend the same curtesy to Sakura. _

Sakura tilted backwards as the vision faded from her.

"Y-You.." She stuttered, having trouble coming to terms with what she had just seen.

"You were human once?" Her voice was soft, she barely registered that her hands were shaking. "And I knew you?!"

"Yes." His answer was simple, and he turned to face her, silver eyes watching her movements carefully. "That was over two thousand years ago."

Sakura took another step backwards, her bare back coming to contact with one of the stone pillars. "How?" Her mind was racing.

She had known him once, before he had become a Kami- and Sakura had a sick feeling in her stomach that the brief encounter she had remembered was only the tip of the iceberg when it came to her relationship with the man before her.

What else had happened?

-0-

Naruto had smashed through three different trees before Kakashi had managed to calm him down.

Sakura's trail had disappeared completely, muddling into nothing from what Pakkun had said. Shino's kekei couldn't pick up any trace of her chakra.

They had lost her. He had lost her, one of his most important people.

Naruto felt broken and hollow. Why did everyone he love leave him?

There had to be a reason she left, there had to be. The Sakura he knew would never give up on him, or leave her home so willingly.

"Naruto." Kakashi's voice was stern, bringing him back to the present. "We'll find out what happened." His statement was a promise, one that Naruto swore he would help keep.

The retrieval party turned around and headed back towards Konoha.

There was nothing here but ash.

-0-

Hidan had dropped the woman on the cold stone floor with barely a second glance.

He had been appalled at the state of the shrine. The building was so far beyond repair, the only part that seemed unchanged was the gaping hole in the center of the room.

That was just as he remembered it.

This was where he sold away who he had been, turning into a faith that would consume him whole. He could barely remember his life from before, although he knew that he had not been happy- so much so that he had been driven to join a cult in the mountains to give his life some sort of purpose, some kind of meaning-

But that had disappeared along with the rest of the order.

Disappeared with the last Priestess.

But that would change now.

He had a new Priestess, and with that a new purpose. He would rebuild the Shrine and rebuild the Order that he had devoted his life to.

Sakura began to stir on the floor.

-0-

As soon as Sakura's eyes open she heaved and vomited nothing but blood all over the floor in front of her. This didn't stop for several more minutes, until she was sure that there was no more liquid left in her body.

Once she had finished her pathetic heaving, a rough hand cupped her chin and helped her drink from a crudely made clay cup- Sakura spit it out at the acrid taste.

"What is that?" She rasped, a hand moving to her throat to help soothe the soreness.

"Drink." Hidan commanded, his lavender eyes were hard as he watched her choke down the rest of the concoction.

She coughed heavily, and for a long moment she was afraid that she would start heaving again but the strangely viscous liquid managed to stay down.

"That is absolutely vile." She hissed, trying to swallow the taste away. "What is it? What happened to me?" She turned swiftly to look around, her pink locks flying every which way.

Hidan gave her another look that made her feel as though she were back in her academy days where she was once again being belittled for her skills.

"I told you this would happen!" Hidan said with a sneer. He turned away from her to face the Shrine. "But you took your fucking sweet time getting here so I had to lug your fat ass all the way up to this damned Shrine." Hidan's hand fidgeted at his side, and Sakura could feel his anger radiating away from him.

She sniffed once, and turned away, trying to gather her clothes around her shoulder for some kind of protection. It didn't help.

After several more long tense moments of silence Sakura finally felt well enough to stand once more. Her legs felt a little wobbly but she would have to manage. The rosette felt so dirty all she wanted to do was bathe, and get the stench of the bloody bile she vomited earlier out of her nose.

She also didn't want to be anywhere near the brooding man in the corner.

Whatever crawled up his ass, Sakura wanted nothing to do with it.

-0-

She had to trek about five miles from the Shrine before she found water that looked clean enough to do the job.

The river she had found didn't seem familiar to her at all, despite the time she had spent the first time around looking for this Shrine. She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts as she lowered her naked body into the cool waters.

Sakura sighed heavily, tilting her head backwards to fully wet her hair.

After she had scrubbed herself as much as she could with the harsh soap she carried with her, she just floated- trying to clear herself of whatever had just happened.

She had known Jashin from before. This scared her. A being so vile had been human once! And Sakura had known him! This thought threw away everything she knew about the Kami. It meant that somehow, mere mortals could ascend into godhood.

The thought of whatever it was that drove Jashin to become what he is must have been something incredibly bad, and Sakura had a feeling deep within her chest that she had something to do with it.

Sakura closed her eyes, feeling sick again.

Several hours passed before she decided that it was time to return back to the Shrine. Her skin had become rather wrinkled.

She dressed slowly, taking extra time to comb out her hair so that it didn't tangle when it dried. Her clothes had taken quiet a beating in the frigid water, the rosette had tried her best to wring the grime out of them.

Once she had dried her clothing with a very weak katon she dressed and gathered her things to return.

Only Jashin had appeared before her, silver eyes blazing as he took in her form.

"You must perform your first rite." His voice was but a whisper, but it made her skin tingle angrily. "Hidan will direct you through it."

Then he was gone, leaving behind only a single wisp of black smoke that slowly faded away into the gloom.

The rosette only shook her head angrily, and stomped her way back to the Shrine.

-0-

Hinata had been in the family archives for what seemed like hours.

But she had managed to gather several large boxes containing anything and everything that had to do with the sealing rituals they performed on the Branch family.

The quick reads she did to discern whether or not the scroll was needed made her sick to her stomach. Growing up, Hinata had no idea the plights that the Branch family went through. She knew that they were treated differently than her and her sister, but that was just something that was a part of their family tradition, not some form of twisted slavery.

When she ascended to be the head of the family she vowed to herself that she would do something that would help change and better the life of her cousins.

It wasn't fair.

Hinata had made it to her quarters in the main house with little to no trouble, and once she had securely shut her door she sat down and prepared herself for a very long night of reading.

She called one of the servants for tea as she prepared several of the shorter scrolls for reading first when she noticed that Hinabi was standing in her doorway.

"What are you doing?"

Hinata cleared her throat and motioned for her younger sister to sit with her.

"I'm doing some research for a friend." The Heiress said quietly, pale hands running over the myriads of seals that littered the aged paper.

"From the family archives? Won't that get you in trouble with father?" The younger Hyuuga's pearl eyes were tight with concentration.

"It might." Hinata conceded. "But I must do everything I can to help my friend." She paused for a long moment. "Please do not tell anyone." Her eyes were downcast.

Hinabi stared at her for several long moments but eventually nodded, glancing back only once in curiosity as she left her sister's quarters.

Once Hinabi had left, Hinata took a sip of her tea- hoping that it would help calm her nerves for what she was about to discover.

-0-

A/N: And there it is. I have been struggling with this story, and that's mostly 'cause I haven't really had time to write much- but I will be moving back into dorms in a week! I'm so excited! And maybe I can settle down enough to write some more for you guys.

Also, it seems that this story has begun to take a turn that might deviate it from the original intended couple. It's obvious that I'm playing favorites with Jashin- and so in the near future this story might change from a Sakura/Hidan to a Sakura/Jashin, or Sakura/Jashin/Hidan. Your input would be welcome!

I hope you enjoyed it!


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